■  ■'•  i  -  ■  ■   •  ■'■  ■  ■-  '•"'■ 


Brown,  Minnie  Mclver 

History  of  Wilmington  Presbyterial  Auxiliary 


George  Washington  F lowers 
Memorial  Collection 

DUKE  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 


ESTABLISHED  BY  THE 

FAMILY  OF 

COLONEL   FLOWERS 


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History  of  Wilmington  | 
Presbyterial  Auxiliary 

I  1888-1922  | 

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History 

of 

Wilmington 
Presbyterial  Auxiliary 


1888-1922 


By 


Mrs.  J.  A.  Brown 


"Thou  'shalt  remember  all  the 
way  which  the  Lord  thy  God  led 
thee."     Deut.  8:  2. 


RALEIGH,  N.  0. 

Edwards  &  Broughton  Printing  Company 

1923 


PRESSES  OF 

EDWARDS  a.  BROCGHTON  PRINTING  COMPANY 

RALEIGH,    NORTH   CAROLINA. 

1923 


^BebicaUb  to  tip  ^cntorg 

of 

JUferath  Ptttemt  Jforlrn^  ^lacg,  <ji^ 

$Bxse  pastor, 

<3lnieIIeriuaI  dSmce, 

jifijeet  jimtjer, 

,3l*tB»traiioitaI  ^Keaoer, 

^gntpa%itc  Jfrumb, 

Cfctlturea  OUfrisltan  (gentleman,  to  mljose  ministry 

anh  influence  %  aufljor  of  fljts  skeiclj 

accoros  grateful  tribute. 


[31 


FOREWORD 

In  the  preparation  of  this  history  I  have  followed,  for  all  his- 
torical data,  the  written  Minutes  of  our  Presbyterial  and  of  our 
Presbytery;  written  records  by  Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall  and  given  by  her  to 
the  Secretary  of  the  Presbyterial;  also  written  data  found  among 
her  private  papers. 

The  incidents  recorded  I  received  from  those  taking  active  part 
in  them,  and  vouched  for  by  two  or  three  witnesses  of  undoubted 
veracity. 

For  the  history  of  early  Presbyterianism  in  our  State  and  Pres- 
bytery I  have  gathered  my  facts  from  "Foote's  Sketches  of  North 
Carolina  History,"  and  from  church  histories  by  Dr.  W.  S.  Lacy, 
Dr.  W.  W.  Moore  and  Rev.  W.  P.  M.  Currie. 

I  wish  to  record  my  gratitude  to  Miss  Jane  Hall,  our  President, 
and  to  members  of  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  Presbyterial  for 
helpful  criticisms  and  suggestions. 

Minnie  McIvee  Brown. 
Chadbourn,  K  C, 

Feb.  8th,  1923. 


[41 


CHAPTER  I. 
ORGANIZATION 

Students  of  the  early  history  of  Presbyterianisni  in  North  Carolina 
are  agreed  that  the  two  largest  settlements  of  Presbyterians  in  the 
State  were  the  Scotch  who  settled  the  upper  Cape  Fear,  with  Cumber- 
land county  as  the  center,  and  those  Scotch-Irish  who  occupied  the 
Piedmont  region  centering  around  Granville  and  Orange  counties. 
These  sections  remain  today  the  great  strongholds  of  Presbyterianism 
in  the  State. 

These  historians  are  also  agreed  that  the  earliest  Presbyterian 
colony  in  the  State  was  composed  of  Scotch-Irish  emigrants  from 
Ulster,  led  by  Henry  McCulloch,  who  in  1776  settled  upon  a  grant 
of  land  in  Duplin  county,  within  the  bounds  of  this  Presbytery. 
This  colony  formed  the  congregation  of  Goshen  Grove,  three  miles 
from  the  present  site  of  Kenansville. 

While  both  history  and  tradition  are  silent  on  the  subject  of 
church  building  and  pastor,  may  we  not  rightfully  conjecture  that 
this  band  of  Presbyterians,  braving  the  hardships  and  dangers  of 
the  new  world  for  the  sake  of  civil  and  religious  liberty,  forsook 
not  the  assembling  of  themselves  together  for  the  worship  of  Almighty 
God  ?  Since  "the  groves  were  God's  first  temples,"  is  it  not,  probable 
that  in  that  "forest  primeval"  some  godly  man,  doubtless  at  the 
suggestion  of  a  saintly  mother,  read  from  the  Book  to  an  assembled 
congregation,  and  "in  the  darkling  wood,  amidst  the  cool  and  silence 
they  knelt  down  and  oifered  to  the  Mightiest  solemn  thanksgiving 
and  supplication  ?"  And  while  not  yet  was  framed  "the  lofty  vault 
to  gather  and  roll  back  the  sound  of  anthems,"  yet  with  God's  chosen 
instrument  of  praise,  the  human  voice,  beneath  the  blue  dome  of 
heaven,  and  the  interlacing  branches  of  cedar  and'  pine,  these  pioneer 
worshipers  joined  in  singing  "Praise  God  from  whom  all  blessings 
flow,"  and  old  Scotia's  grand  and  inspiring  hymns,  singing  and 
making  melody  in  their  hearts  unto  God. 

The  present  Grove  church  at  Kenansville  traces  its  origin  back  to 
this  pioneer  congregation. 

Contemporary  with  this  settlement  was  another  Presbyterian  one 
in  ]STew  Hanover  county  on  what  was  known  as  the  Welsh  Tract, 

151 


6  The   Wilmington   Pkesbyterial   Auxiliary 

composed  of  Welsh  emigrants,  which  was  later  reinforced  by  other 
families. 

It  is  believed  that  Rev.  William  Robinson,  the  first  Presbyterian 
minister  to  preach  in  North  Carolina,  visited  these  colonies  in  the 
winter  of  1742-43.  However,  conjecture  is  not  history,  and  not 
until  the  visit  of  Rev.  Hugh  McAden  in  1755  does  authentic  history 
of  Presbyterianisni  in  this  Presbytery  begin.  Mr.  McAden  kept 
a  full  journal  of  his  missionary  tour  and  it  has  been  preserved  to 
the  present  day.  In  it  he  tells  us  that  he  preached  in  Wilmington, 
Febuary  15,  1756,  "in  the  morning  to  a  large  and  splendid  audience," 
but  in  the  afternoon  to  only  "about  a  dozen."  The  next  two  Sundays 
he  preached  to  the  people  of  the  Welsh  Tract,  who  evidently  liked 
his  preaching  and  him,  for  they  extended  him  a  call. 

This  is  the  first  call  issued  to  a  Presbyterian  minister  by  a 
North  Carolina  congregation.  As  it  was  not  recorded  in  writing, 
or  if  so,  not  preserved,  it  probably  did  not  constitute  a  formal  call. 
So  we  find  that  the  first  recorded  call  was  issued  in  1758  by  the 
congregations  of  Cumberland  county,  signed  by  twelve  representative 
men,  to  Rev.  James  Campbell,  who  had  been  sent  to  them  the  year 
before  by  Rev.  Mr.  McAden.  This  call  is  recorded  in  the  court 
records  of  that  county. 

It  would  appear,  however,  that  the  Rev.  Hugh  McAden  kept  the 
call  of  the  Welsh  Tract  congregation  in  mind,  for  in  1759  we  find 
him  installed  as  pastor  of  the  Duplin  and  New  Hanover  congre- 
gations, and  presenting  his  credentials  at  a  meeting  of  New  Hanover 
Presbytery  on  Rockfish,  July  18,  1759.  This  would  indicate  that 
there  was  an  organized  church  here  at  which  Presbytery  was  meet- 
ing, and  fits  in  with  the  well  established  tradition  that  Rockfish 
church  was  organized  in  1756. 

Had  records  been  preserved  it  would  be  interesting  to  tell  in 
a  history  of  woman's  work  in  the  Presbytery  the  number  of  women 
who  were  charter  members  of  these  first  churches  ministered  to 
by  Mr.  McAden.  We  know  from  given  records  that  there  was  a 
"Woman's  Auxiliary"  even  though  it  may  have  counted  but  one 
woman  on  its  roll,  for  we  read  that  Mr.  McAden  married  Miss 
Scott  of  Lunenburg  county,  Va.,  and  that  she  came  with  him, 
taking  the  long  journey  on  horseback  through  many  miles  of  wild 
forest  infested  by  hostile  Indians,  and  like  Rebecca  of  old,  for 
love's  sweet  sake  took  up  her  abode  in  a  land  that  she  knew  not  of. 
And  though  no  record  of  her  life  and  deeds  has  come  down  to 
us  save  the  significant  one  that  she  bore  and  reared  a  family  of 
seven  children,  she  must  have  been  of  heroic  soul,  intelligent  and 


Organization  7 

devout  to  have  been  chosen  as  life  companion  and  helpmate  by  this 
intellectual,  highly  educated  man,  a  graduate  of  Nassau  Hall,  Prince- 
ton. She  must  also  have  been  missionary-hearted  to  have  been 
willing  to  come  to  this  pioneer  field.  So  we  may  justly  claim  Mrs. 
McAden  as  the  pioneer  representative  of  woman's  work  in  this 
Presbytery. 

From  the  beginning  of  Christ's  ministry  on  down  through  the 
history  of  the  church  we  catch  glimpses  of  the  work  of  individual 
women.  Martha's  consecrated  gift  was  hospitality  and  service; 
Mary  was  the  lavish  giver,  and  both  were  intercessors  for  Lazarus. 
"Behold  him  whom  thou  lovest  is  sick."  Dorcas  consecrated  her 
needle  to  Christian  service;  the  daughters  of  Philip  proclaimed 
the  Gospel ;  Lydia's  hospitality  and  faithfulness  to  prayer-meeting 
brought  Christianity  to  Europe;  the  mother  of  Constantine  founded 
a  home  for  travellers,  while  his  daughters  opened  the  first  hospital, 
and  were  the  first  to  succor  lepers. 

Even  Paul,  whom  we  could  not  call  partial  to  women,  places 
the  names  of  women  on  his  roll  call  of  Eaith.  "By  faith,  Sarah," 
"by  faith,  Rahab,"  "by  faith  women  received  their  dead;"  he  com- 
mends "Phebe,  our  sister,  which  is  a  servant  of  the  church,"  a 
deaconess,  sends  his  letter  to  the  Romans  by  her  faithful  hand, 
and  requests  that  the  church,  "assist  her  in  whatsoever  business 
she  hath  need  of  you ;  for  she  hath  been  a  succourer  of  many  and 
of  myself  also."  He  sends  greetings  to  Priscilla,  along  with  Aquila, 
"my  helpers  in  Christ  Jesus;  who  have  for  my  life  laid  down  their 
own  necks,  unto  whom  not  only  I  give  thanks,  but  also  all  the 
churches  of  the  Gentiles."  She  was  probably  a  deaconess  also, 
she  shared  the  travels,  labours  and  dangers  of  her  husband,  and  is 
always  named  along  with  him.  He  greets  Mary  as  one  "who 
bestowed  much  labour  on  us  ;  also  Tryphena  and  Tryphosa,"  probably 
sisters,  "who  labour  in  the  Lord,"  "beloved  Persis,  who  laboured 
much  in  the  Lord" — a  Christian  woman  of  Rome,  A.  D.  55.  He 
commends  Timothy  for  "the  unfeigned  faith  that  is  in  thee,  which 
dwelt   first   in   thy  grandmother   Lois,    and   thy   mother   Eunice.'5" 

Jesus  gave  only  five  special  commendations,  and  four  of  these 
were  of  women.  A  woman  first  rejoiced  at  the  announcement  of 
His  coming;  women  followed  Him  to  Golgotha,  and  while  the 
disciples  deserted  Him  and  fled,  they  stood  by  to  the  end,  annointed 
His  body  for  burial  and  saw  where  He  was  laid. 

A  woman  discovered  the  empty  tomb;  a  woman  discovered  the 
risen  Lord;  women  first  proclaimed  the  resurrection,  at  Christ's 
command,  "Go  tell  my  brethren."     There  were  women  in  the  group 


8  The   Wilmington   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

when  He  said,  "Ye  are  my  witnesses;"  women  were  in  the  upper 
chamber  when  the  Holy  Spirit  descended  with  power,  for  Peter 
declared  it  the  fulfillment  of  the  prophecy,  "Your  sons  and  daughters 
shall  prophesy.  *  *  *  And  on  my  servants  and  on  my  hand- 
maidens I  will  pour  out  in  those  days  of  my  spirit ;  and  they  shall 
prophesy."  On  down  through  the  ages  He  has  been  saying  to  her, 
in  accents  of  unspeakable  tenderness,  "Daughter,  be  of  good  comfort." 

Not  she  with  traitorous  kiss  her  Saviour  stung; 

Not  she  denied  Him  with  unholy  tongue; 

She,  while  apostles  shrank,  could  dangers  brave, 

Last  at  the  cross  and  earliest  at  the  grave. 

Mrs.  W.  C.  Winsborough,  Superintendent  of  Woman's  Work 
in  the  Presbyterian  Church,  U.  S.,  gives  as  the  first  woman's  organi- 
zation in  the  South  of  which  we  have  any  authentic  record,,  "The 
Female  Benevolent  Society  of  Richmond  and  Manchester,"  Va., 
which  was  organized  in  1817  (no  month  given)  as  an  auxiliary  to 
the  Bible  Society  of  Virginia.  It  was  interdenominational,  and 
seemed  to  have  been  strictly  a  Bible  Society. 

The  second  society  in  the  South,  Mrs.,  Winsborough  gives  as  "The 
Ladies'  Benevolent  Society"  of  New  Providence  Church  (Lexington 
Presbytery)  Va.,  organized  in  1819.  It  adopted  a  regular  consti- 
tution, setting  forth  as  its  object  "to  raise  money  for  the  support 
of  missionaries,  to  aid  pious  young  men  to  qualify  for  the  ministry, 
or  any  other  benevolent  cause  said  society  may  think  best." 

The  two  oldest  missionary  societies  in  the  Presbyterian  church 
in  North  Carolina  were  given  by  Mrs.  Winsborough  as  the  "Society 
of  Young  Ladies  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Fayetteville,"  and 
"The  Female  Juvenile  Missionary  Society  of  Fayetteville  Presby- 
terian Church."  No  written  records  of  these  societies  have  been 
preserved,  and  exact  date  of  organization  is  not  known.  The  minutes 
of  the  Fayetteville  Presbytery  from  1816  to  1820  record  each  year 
the  contribution  to  Foreign  Missions,  of  certain  sums  from  "Women 
of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Fayetteville."  This  would 
indicate  an  organization,  for  otherwise  their  contributions  would 
lave  naturally  gone  through  the  regular  church  channels,  provided 
-there  were  regular  collections  in  our  church  for  Foreign  Mis- 
sions at  that  early1  date. 

The  first  reference  to  the  "Society  of  Young  Ladies  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  of  Fayetteville"  is  an  inspiration  on  a  communion 
service  presented  by  the  said  society  to  the  church  September  20th, 
1824.  Again  in  1831  the  sessional  record  of  the  church  refers  to 
"The  Young  Ladies'  Missionary  Society." 


Mistress  Dorothy  Boxey, 

Treasurer  of  Rockfish  Female  Missionary 
Society,   1817. 


Oeganization  9 

On  a  monument  in  old  Cross  Creek  Cemetery,  Fayetteville,  N".  C, 
is  this  inscription:  "Sacred  to  the  Memory  of  our  Pastor,  Rev. 
James  Douglas,"  etc.  ''Erected  by  the  Female  Juvenile  Society  of 
Fayetteville  Presbyterian  Church  in  1837." 

Another  very  old  society  is  "The  Female  Cent  Society"  of  Liberty 
county,  Georgia,  April  1,  1817,  but  that,  like  the  Female  Benevolent 
Society  of  Virginia  was  interdenominational  and  not  strictly  a  Mis- 
sionary Society.  However,  it  was  organized  with  a  constitution, 
officers,  list  of  members ;  and  has  had  a  continuous  record  from  its 
very  beginning. 

The  earliest  attempt  at  organized  woman's  work  in  Wilmington 
Presbytery  was  in  the  old  Rockfish  congregation.  Happily  the  records 
of  this  organization  have  been  preserved,  and  show  that  the  "Rock- 
fish  Female  Missionary  Society"  was  in  existence  as  early  as  1817. 
with  the  names  of  thirty  women  on  its  roll.  They  were  accustomed 
to  meet  in  the  spring  and  in  the  fall.  The  minutes  recording  the 
first  six  months'  contribution  is  dated  March  23rd,  1818,  so  the 
society  was  evidently  organized  early  in  the  fall  of  1817.  The  con- 
tributions for  the  first  year  were:  To  the  North  Carolina  Mission- 
ary Society,  $17.50;  to  the  purchase  of  religious  tracts  for  the 
society,  $6.50.  So  we  see  this  early  society  carried  the  idea  of 
Missionary  Education  along  with  giving,  though  it  may  not  have 
had  a  secretary  of  literature. 

The  officers  were :  Mary  Boney,  president ;  Mary  Teaehey,  vice- 
president;  Dorothy  Boney,  treasurer;  Eliza  Tate,  secretary. 

The  following  is  an  exact  copy  of  the  seven-page  Minutes  of 
this  old  organization,  including  its  roll  of  membership,  believed  to 
be  the  oldest  preserved  original  record  of  any  woman's  Foreign 
Missionary  Society  in  the  Southern  Presbyterian  Church : 

Page    1 
$       cts 

Mrs.  Mary  Boney,   paid  1 

Mrs  Mary  F.  Teaehey  1 

Rebecca  Bloodworth  1 

Dorothy  Boney  50 

Izbel    Pigford  50 

Ann  Savage  Paid                                        50 

Elizar  Pigford  50 

Mary  New  50 

Ann  Boney  50 

Prisilla  Wilson  50 

Elizar  Wilson  50 

Elizar  Filyaw  60 

Sarah  Bloodworth  1 


10  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

Page  2 

Mary  Ann  Boney  50 

Catherine  Boney  50 

Mary  Holmes  Teachey  50 

Elizar  Tate  1 

Rebecca  Tate  50 

Mary  Tate  50 

Joseb   Pigford  50 

Tempy  Wood  50 

Marthew  Pigford  50 

Ann  W.  Boney  50 

Catherine   Sotherland  50 

Susanna  Boney  50 

Mary  Boney  50 

Penelopy  Newcerk  1 

Sophia  Rivenbark  50 

Jane  Hall  1 

page  3. 

$     cts 
"Received  of  Mrs.  Dorothy  Boney 
Treasurer  to  the  Rockfish  female  missionary 

Society  Seventeen  Dollars  and  fifty  cents  17.59 

to  be  sent  to  the  Presbytery  of  Payetteville  to 
the  Treasurer  of  the  North  Carolina  missionary 
Society  by  me 
this  the  23  of  March  1818 

Rob  Tate 
"Received  of  Mrs.  Boney  dollar  1.50 

and  fifty  cents 

Received  of  Mrs.  D.  Boney  Six 
dollars  Seventeen  &  half  cents  for 

purchase  religious  tracts  for  6.17-1/2 

the  female  Society  of  Rockfish 

th 
Fayetteville  October  2  1818  Received  of 
the  Reverend  Robert  Tate  the  sum  of 
$19  a  donation  from  the  Rockfish  female 
missionary  society. 

W.  M'Pheeters. 
Received  Oct.  4,  1818  of  Rev.   Mr.  Tate 
Six  Dollars  for  Tracts. 

J.  H.  Hines. 

"page  4, 
$     cts 
Elizabeth  Pigford,  50 

C.   Sotherland  50 

Is.  Pigford  50 

Jerusa  Pigford  50 


Organization  11 

Martha  Pigford  50 

Molsy  Boney  59 

Mary  Teachey  50 

Mary  H.  Teachey  50 

Mary  Boney  50 

Sarsana  Boney  50 

Ann  Savidge  55 

Ann  Boney  50 

Dorothy  Boney  50 

Mary  Ann  Boney                                   •  50 

Catherine  Boney  50 

Temperance  Wood  50 

Penellope  Newkirck  50 

Eliza  Wilson  50 

Prissilla  Wilson  50 

Eliza   Fillyaw  50 

page  5. 
Eliza  Tate   paid  1. 

Margaret  Tate  50 

Sarah  Filyaw  .  50 

Mary  New  1         50 

Sarah  Bloodworth  1 

Rebeckah  Thommes  50 

Edward   Pigford  90 

Received  from  the  Treasurer  of  the  female  missionary 
Society  of  Rockfish  Meeting  house  to  be  given  to  the 
treasurer  of  the  North  Carolina  Missionary  Society 
this  the  26  of  Sept.  1819, 
$15.60  fifteen  dollars  and  by  me 

sixty  cents, 

Rob  Tate. 
Died  the  24th  of  July  1819,  Mrs.  Rebecca  Bloodworth,  a 
member  of  this  society  whose  death  we  record  with  deep 
sorrow. 

Died  on  the  15th  of  October,  1819,  Miss  Mary  Ann  Boney 
a  member  of  this  society  whose  death  we  record  with  deep 
sorrow. 

Hannah   Pigford 
Joshus  Pigford 
Martha  Pigford 

Sophea  Rivenbark  paid  50  ct  each 

Tempe  Wood 
Elizabeth   Tate        N 
Margaret   Tate 
Izbel  Pigford 

Rebecca  Thomas  paid  50 

Elizar  Pigford  50 

Mary  Teachy  50 

Mary  Teachey  50 


12  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

Sarah  Bloodworth  50 

Mary  Boney  60 

Ann   Savage  60 

Jane  Gilman  50 

Ann  W.  Boney  50 

Eliza  Wilson  50 

Pennelopy  Newkirk  50 

Mary  Wilson  50 

Prissiller  Wilson  50 

Dorothy  Boney  59 

Catherine  Carr  50 

Catherine  Sotherland  50 

[Exact  copy] 

"Cumberland  County  Tirzah  Church 
Oct.  4,  1819. 

Received  of  Rev.  Robt.  Tate 
fifteen  dollars  and  sixty  cents  as  a  donation  from  the 
female  Missionary  Society  at  Rockfish. 

Colin  Mclver" 
The   minutes   preceeding  this   authorized   Mr.    Tate   to   pay   this   amount 
to  the  Treasurer  of  North  Carolina  Missionary  Society,  so  Mr.  Mclver  was 
evidently  Treasurer  at  that  time. 


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Facsimile  of  3rd  Page  From  Minutes  op  Rockfish  Female  Missionary  Society 


Organization  13 

Dr.  W.  W.  Moore,  writing  of  Dr.  John  Holt  Rice,  founder  of 
Union  Theological  Seminary,  states  that  he  organized  the  first 
Young  Men's  Missionary  Society  that  ever  existed  in  the  whole 
of  the  territory  extending  from  New  Orleans  to  New  York ;  that 
it  was  known  as  the  Young  Men's  Missionary  Society  of  Richmond, 
and  consisted  of  about  forty  members,  and  that  this  was  in  1819. 

Attention  is  herewith  called  to  the  fact  that  the  "Rockfish  Female 
Missionary  Society"  antedates  this  organization  by  two  years;  that 
it  anedates  the  two  in  Fayetteville  Presbytery;  that  it  is  of  equal 
date,  at  least,  with  the  "Female  Benevolent  Society"  of  Virginia; 
that  it  antidates  the  "Ladies'  Benevolent  Society  of  New  Provi- 
dence Church,"  Virginia,  by  two  years;  that  these  thirty  women 
at  that  early  date  in  our  church  history  led  the  way  in  recognizing 
the  great  object  of  the  church  and  of  Christ's  mission  to  the  world; 
that  it  is  the  oldest  Women's  Missionary  Society  in  the  Southern 
Presbyterian  Church,  and  the  oldest  one  whose  records  are  pre- 
served with  full  names  of  members  and  officers. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  present  Treasurer  of  the  Rockfish 
Auxiliary,  Mrs.  Mary  Robinson  Wells,  is  a  great  granddaughter 
of  Dorothy  Boney,  whose  name  appears  as  first  treasurer  of  Rock- 
fish  Female  Missionary  Society.  Mrs.  R.  Murphy  Williams,  wife 
of  the  beloved  pastor  of  the  Church  of  the  Covenant,  Greensboro, 
N.  C,  and  recently  Secretary  of  Foreign  Missions  of  the  Orange 
Presbyterial,  is  also  a  great  granddaughter  of  this  same  Mistress 
Dorothy  Boney.  "The  children  of  thy  servants  shall  continue, 
and  their  seed  shall  be  established  before  thee."  Our  God  is  a 
covenant-keeping  God. 

Since  Rockfish  Presbyterian  Church  has  the  honor  of  having  the 
oidest  Woman's  Foreign  Missionary  Society  of  the  Southern  Presby- 
terian Church,  a  brief  outline  of  her  history  will  be  of  interest  in 
this  sketch.  From  the  History  of  Rockfish  Church,  by  Rev.  W.  P.  M, 
Currie,  present  pastor  of  the  church,  I  glean  the  following  facts: 
"Tradition,  well-established,  places  the  organization  of  the  church, 
1756,  during  the  year  of  the  missionary  labors  of  the  Rev.  Hugh 
McAden,  sent  out  by  New  Castle  Presbytery,  Va."  In  1759, 
Mr.  McAden  returned  and  became  the  settled  minister  of  Duplin 
and  New  Hanover  counties.  Having  been  dismissed  from  New 
Castle  Presbytery  to  join  New  Hanover  Presbytery,  "He  presented 
his  credentials  at  a  meeting  of  the  Presbytery  at  Rockfish,  July 
18th,  1759,  having  previously  sat  as  a  corresponding  member." 
This  statement  from  history  clearly  indicates  that  Presbytery  was 
meeting  with!  some  congregation  which  had  a  formal  existence  before 


14  The   "Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

1759,  and  at  sonie  established  place  of  worship  on  or  near  Rock- 
fish  Creek.  The  logical  conclusion  is  that  it  was  old  Rockfish 
Church,  at  or  near  its  present  site.  Mr.  McAden  labored  here 
and  in  Eastern  Carolina  for  ten  years.  The  congregations  in  Duplin 
and  Xew  Hanover  were  served  afterwards  by  missionaries  who 
occasionally  visited  them  until  1793.  The  Revolution  was  a  con- 
tributing cause  for  the  desolation  of  the  church  work  in  this  section. 
In  1793,  Rev.  John  Robinson  settled  in  Duplin  county  and  labored 
here  until  1800.  In  1798  Rev.  Robert  Tate,  a  licentiate  of  Orange 
Presbytery,  during  whose  ministry  Rockfish  Female  Missionary 
Society  was  organized,  visited  Duplin  and  New  Hanover  counties 
and  became  a  resident  minister.  His  first  charge  was  South  Wash- 
ington and  Rockfish,  according  to  the  Minutes  of  Synod  for  the 
year  1799.  He  held  his  first  communion  "On  Rockfish,"  which 
would  clearly  imply  a  church  and  an  organized  congregation.  The 
work  of  this  church  was  evidently  revived,  reorganized  and  grew 
through  the  labors  of  Mr.  Tate.  It  was  during  the  ministry  and 
with  the  sympathy  and  co-operation  of  this  good  man  that  Rock- 
fish Female  Missionary  Society  was  organized  in  the  fall  of  1817. 
In  1836  there  was  a  Men's  Missionary  Society  in  old  Rockfish 
church,  known  as  the  "Rockfish  Missionary  Association."  The  asso- 
ciation seems  to  have  had  just  one  annual  meeting  when  a  special 
sermon  was  preached,  and  a  collection  taken.  The  first  collection 
was  $20.00,  and  Owen  Pigford  was  treasurer.  This  also  was 
organized  during  Mr.  Tate's  ministry. 

In  the  summer  of  1817,  on  account  of  bodily  infirmities,  he 
closed  a  pastorate  with  Rockfish  church,  of  practically  a  half 
century  in  duration.  He  retired  to  his  plantation  located  on  S ill's 
creek,  about  five  miles  from  Rockfish  church,  Pender  county,  where 
he  continued  to  reside  until  his  death  in  1867  in  the  93d  year  of 
his  life.  He  was  interred  in  the  family  burying  ground  near  by. 
In  the  fall  of  1873  Wilmington  Presbytery,  in  high  appreciation 
of  his  long  and  valuable  service,  adopted  a  resolution  to  "erect 
a  suitable  monument  to  his  memory."  A  committee  was  appointed 
to  collect  funds  for  same.  In  1877  the  session  of  Rockfish  reported 
to  Presbytery  that  the  work  had  been  done,  and,  quoting  verbatim 
from  Rev.  W.  P.  M.  Currie's  sketch  of  Rev.  Robert  Tate  in  his 
History  of  Rockfish  church:  "This  faithful  'servant  of  Christ 
was  a  strong  man,  and  one  who  did  earnestly  contend  for  the  faith 
which  was  once  delivered  unto  the  Saints.  He  was  one  of  the 
charter  members  of  Fayetteville  Presbytery  which  was  organized 
in   1813,   and  his  death  occurred  just  one  year  before  the  Pres- 


Rev.  Robert  Tate, 
Pastor  Rockfish  Church  at  the  Organiza- 
tion  of   Rockfish   Female   Missionary 
Society.   Fall    of   1817. 


Organization  15 

bytery  of  Wilmington  was  set  off.  His  was  the  longest  ministry 
np  to  this  time  of  either  of  the  two  Presbyteries,  reaching  over  a 
period  of  sixty-nine  years.  Rockfish,  which  he  served  so  long, 
was  one  of  the  twenty-seven  charter  churches  of  Fayetteville  Pres- 
bytery and  one  of  the  twenty-two  charter  churches  of  Wilmington 
Presbytery.  It  may  be  truly  said  that  few  men  in  our  country 
of  any  denomination  have  served  one  church  as  long  as  Mr.  Tate 
served  Rockfish,  and  very  few  have  served  a  ministry  of  sixty-nine 
years. 

He  was  not  only  an  active  and  pious  minister  of  the  gospel,  but 
he  was  prominent  in  the  affairs  of  the  various  church  courts,  being 
five  times  moderator  of  the  Presbytery.  He  preached  to  the  Women's 
Missionary  Society  from  such  passages  of  scripture  as  these : 
Hebrews,  13:16,  "But  to  do  good  and  to  communicate  forget  not, 
for  with  such  sacrifices  God  is  well  pleased,"  and  Luke,  10  :33-34, 
"And  when  he  saw  him  he  had  compassion  on  him,  and  bound  up 
his  wounds,  pouring  in  oil  and  wine." 

Mr.  Tate  was  born  in  Alamance  county,  in  the  Hawfields,  May 
3,  1774,  and  was  educated  at  Old  Caldwell  Institute.  August  7, 
1799,  he  married  Margaret  Bloodworth,  whose  name  appears  as 
a  charter  member  of  Rockfish  Female  Missionary  Society,  a  daughter 
of  Timothy  Bloodworth,  Collector  of  Customs  at  Wilmington,  and 
at  one  time  a  member  of  Congress.  His  second  wife  was  Eliza- 
beth Hunter.  He  had  six  children.  His  granddaughter,  Miss 
Mollie  Tate,  writes  thus  of  him:  "His  zeal  to  promote  the  cause 
of  religion  induced  him  to  write  several  hymns,  only  one  of  which 
is  properly  accredited  to  him,  that  being  the  familiar  one  whose 
first  verse  is : 

While  shepherds  watched  their  flocks  by  night, 

All  seated  on  the  ground, 
The  angel  of  the  Lord  came  down 

And  glory  shone  around. 

As  early  as  1878  we  find  a  Woman's  Foreign  Missionary  Society 
in  Wilmington  Second  Presbyterian  Church ;  one  in  Clarkton  Pres- 
byterian Church,  organized  June  1886 ;  one  in  Burgaw  organized 
May,  1886 ;  and  there  were  others  in  several  churches  of  slightly 
later  date. 

In  the  Treasurer's  book  of  the  First  Church,  Wilmington  (trust 
the  Treasurer  to  appreciate  the  women,  even  if  the  session  may 
not),  is  found  this  record,  following  the  annual  financial  report: 
"While  this  report  shows  that  little  aid  is  extended  to  our  poor, 
still    they    are    well    cared    for    through    our    Ladies'    Benevolent 


16  The   Wilmington   Peesbytebial   Auxiliaey 

Society,  an  adjunct  of  our  church,  which  has  been  prosecuting 
a  successful  and  charitable  work  for  several  years  past.  It  might 
be  interesting  to  the  congregation  if  this  society  would  make  a1 
report  of  its  work."  Signed  by  Wm.  R.  Kenan,  January  1,  1884.. 
The  historian  can  but  regret  that  the  ladies  did  not  take  his  hint, 
and  make  a  report  to  the  session  so  that  we  could  have  a  full  and* 
permanent  record  of  this  old  society.  Another  entry  in  the  Treas- 
urer's book  is  "December  30,  1883.  Special  from  the  Ladies  for 
Synod,  $81.87."  This  was  to  help  defray  the  expense  of  enter- 
taining the  meeting  of  Synod  in  the  church  in  the  fall  of  1883. 

In  1888  Dr.  Peyton  H.  Hoge,  pastor  of  the  first  Presbyterian 
church  of  Wilmington,  and  Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall,  recognizing  with  proph- 
etic vision  the  spirit  and  latent  power  for  good  in  these  young  and 
struggling  Women's  Foreign  Missionary  societies  of  the  Presbytery, 
conceived  the  idea  of  banding  them  together  in  a  Union  for  mutual 
helpfulness  and  inspiration.  Pursuant  to  this  vision  a  Woman's: 
Foreign  Missionary  Society  was  organized  in  the  First  Church  in 
Wilmington,  April  24th,  1888,  and  its  president,  Mrs.  D.  T.  Lewis, 
mother  of  Mrs.  P.  W.  Hicks,  issued  an  invitation  to  all  the  women's-- 
and  young  people's  societies  in  the  Presbytery  to  meet  with  the- 
society  of  the  First  Church  for  the  purpose  of  organizing1  a  Woman's'. 
Foreign  Missionary  Union. 

Among  Mrs.  Hall's  private  papers  were  found  letters  from  three' 
of  these  societies.  One  was  from  Miss  Mary  Anderson  of  Clinton, 
dated  May  18,  1888,  stating  that  the  young  people's  Foreign  Mis- 
sionary Society  of  Clinton  would  gladly  co-operate  with  the  Ladies 
Foreign  Missionary  Society  of  First  Church,  Wilmington,  in  this 
Missionary  movement  and  that  she  would  represent  the  said  society 
at  the  Conference.  Another,  signed  "Mary  H.  McMillan"  of 
Teachey's,  was  dated  March  5th,  1888,  and  one  from  Miss  Sallie 
Morrison  of  Whiteville,  dated  May  11,  1888,  told  of  the  organization 
of  a  Ladies  Foreign  Missionary  Society  in  that  church  on  May  9th, 
and  of  having  elected  delegates  to  attend  the  conference  at  First 
Church,  Wilmington.  These  delegates  were  Misses  Kittle  McKin- 
non  and  Sallie  Morrison.  Mrs.  J.  W.  Stanley  was  first  president 
of  the  Whiteville  society,  and  Miss  Sallie  Morrison  was  secretary 
and  treasurer.  And  while  there  was  a  period  of  four  years  in  this 
society  when  it  had  only  three  members,  they  did  not  give  up, 
and  it  was  the  banner  society  in  gifts  one  year  during  this  time. 

Mrs.  Hall  had  begun  the  work  of  forming  missionary  societies 
in  our  Presbytery  as  early  as  January  of  that  year.  A  letter  from 
Miss  Jennie  Hanna,  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  dated  January  18,  1888,  tells 


Organization  17 

of  sending'  circulars,  and  commends  her  efforts  to  form  missionary 
societies  in  the  churches  of  her  Presbytery.  Referring  to  the  ladies 
of  First  Church,  she  says,  "I  think  those  of  you  who  are  support- 
ing Dr.  Woods  could  certainly  call  yourselves  'The  Ladies  Mission- 
ary Society,'  for  you  are  doing  an  excellent  missionary  work."  So 
it  is  very  evident  that  the  women  of  First  Church,  Wilmington,  had 
been  doing  excellent  missionary  and  benevolent  work  for  many  years 
previous  to  this  time,  though  they  were  not  making  any  noise 
about  it.  But  they  recognized  the  fact  that  the  time  had  arrived 
when  they  must  take  the  lead  and  reach  out  beyond  the  bounds  of 
their  own  church.     Hence  the  organization  of  the  Union. 

Representatives  from  eleven  societies  in  nine  churches  responded 
to  the  invitation,  three  of  these  representing  young  people's  societies. 
The  societies  sending  delegates  were :  women's  societies  of  Clark- 
ton,  Mt.  Horeb,  Goldsboro,  Whiteville,  Burgaw,  Kenansville,  Wil- 
mington First  Church,  Wilmington  Second  Church ;  young  people's 
societies   of    Clinton,    Goldsboro,    and   First    Church,    Wilmington. 

These  represented  a  membership  of  228,  with  contributions  for 
the  year  ending  188S,  $273.75. 

This  first  convention  met  in  the  Lecture  Room  of  the  First 
Presbyterian  Church,  Wilmington,  Wednesday,  May  30th,  1888, 
at  5  P.  M.  and  proceeded  to  organize  the  Union. 

In  reading  the  minutes  of  this  early  meeting,  we  are  impressed 
with  the  business-like  precision  with  which  the  convention  moved. 

Our  first  devotional  was  conducted  by  Dr.  Hoge,  assisted  by 
Rev.  J.  C.  McMullen  of  Goldsboro.  Mrs.  Lewis  called  the  meet- 
ing to  order  and  presided.  Then  followed  in  orderly  succession 
the  enrollment  of  delegates;  the  election  of  officers,  Mrs  B.  F. 
Hall  of  Wilmington  being  elected  president,  and  Miss  Mary  Ander- 
son of  Clinton,  secretary;  reading  of  reports  from  societies;  ap- 
pointment of  a  committee  of  five  to  prepare  a  constitution  for  the 
permanent  organization,  said  committee  to  submit  the  same  to  the 
convention  on  the  following  day  at  11  A.M.;  the  reading  of  a 
telegram  of  greetings  to  the  Union  from  the  Woman's  Foreign 
Missionary  Society  of  ~First  Church,  Charlotte ;  appointment  of  a 
committee  to  send  a  responsive  telegram  to  the  above ;  announce- 
ments;  singing  of  the  missionary  hymn;   adjournment. 

The  second  day's  session  met  in  the  same  place  at   11  A.   M., 
May  31st,  1888.     The  devotional  was  conducted  by  Rev.  J.  L.  Stu- 
art, returned  missionary  from  China  (Hangchow)   and  Rev.  P.  L. 
2 


18  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

Hoge,  the  secretary's  minutes  stating  "after  this  the  gentlemen  re- 
tired."    How  very  conservative  and  Paul-ine ! 

The  outstanding  features  of  that  second  day's  session  were  the 
adoption  of  the  constitution;  the  election  of  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee, composed  of  the  following:  Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall,  Chairman, 
Mesdames  E.  N".  Sweet,  Julia  Fillyaw,  J.  ]STewton  Green,  Joseph 
Archer,  D.  G.  Robeson,  Miss  Mary  Anderson;  and  the  missionary 
address  on  Woman's  Work  in  China  by  Mrs.  J.  L.  Stuart.  The 
meeting  adjourned  with  prayer  and  the  singing  of  the  Doxology, 
a  fitting  close  to  the  birthday  of  the  Union  of  Woman's  Organized 
Work  in  Wilmington  Presbytery. 

Wilmington  Presbyterial  Union  is  the  second  oldest  in  the  Pres- 
byterian Church,  U.  S.,  East  Hanover,  Va.,  having  organized  March 
2nd,  1888.  The  following  is  the  Constitution  adopted  at  the  organi- 
zation of  the  Union  in  1888 : 

CONSTITUTION 

OF 

The  Ladies'  Foreign  Missionary  Union 

OF 

WILMINGTON  PRESBYTERY 

1888 

ARTICLE  I.— Name. 
The  name  of  this   organization   shall  be   the  Woman's  Foreign   Mission- 
ary Union  of  Wilmington  Presbytery. 

ARTICLE  II.— Object. 
The  object  of  this  Union  shall  be:  1.  To  plant  a  Woman's  Foreign 
Missionary  Society  in  every  church  of  the  Presbytery  where  there  is 
not  one  now;  2.  To  increase  the  interest  and  promote  the  growth  of 
the  societies  already  organized;  3.  To  aid  the  General  Assembly's  Execu- 
tive Committee  in  selecting  and  sending  to  the  field  suitable  lady  mission- 
aries;  4.  To  support  and  cheer  our  lady  missionaries  in  the  field. 

ARTICLE  III.— Constituency. 
All   Foreign    Missionary    Societies   of   ladies   and    girls    in   the    churches 
of  this  Presbytery  shall,  upon  their  enrollment,  become   constituent  mem- 
bers of  this  Union. 

ARTICLE  IV. — Management. 
The  affairs  of  this  Union  shall  be  in  the  hands  of  an  Executive  Com- 
mittee  of  seven,  three  oT  whom,   including   the  Chairman,   shall,  for  con- 
venience, be  located  in  one  place,  and  shall  be  known  as  the  Local  Com- 
mittee. 


Organization  19 

ARTICLE    V. — Annual   Convention. 
The  Union  shall  meet   in   an  Annual   Convention   to   receive  the   reports 
of  the   Societies,   and  of  the  Executive  Committee,   and  to   consult  for  the 
general  interests  of  the  Union  and  of  the  Foreign  Missionary  cause. 

ARTICLE  VI.— Officers. 
The  officers  of  the  Union  shall  be  a  President  and   Secretary,  who  shall 
be  elected  upon  the  organization  of  the  Annual  Convention,  and  shall  hold 
their  offices  until  their  successors  are  chosen  the  following  year. 

BY-LAWS 

ARTICLE  I. — The  Executive  Committee. 
It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Executive  Committee  in  general  to  carry 
out  the  objects  specified  in  Article  II  of  the  Constitution.  To  that  end 
they  may  send  representatives  to  visit  churches  having  no  Society,  or 
whose  Society  may  need  encouragement;  or  they  may  accomplish  the 
same  ends  by  correspondence;  they  shall  seek  out  suitable  lady  workers 
for  the  foreign  field,  and  report  them  to  the  Assembly's  Executive  Com- 
mittee; they  shall  endeavor  to  circulate  useful  Foreign  Missionary  litera- 
ture to  stimulate  the  interest  of  the  women  of  the  Presbytery  in  this 
cause;  they  shall  conduct  such  correspondence  as  shall  seem  desirable 
with  lady  missionaries  in  the  field;  they  shall  disburse  and  account  for 
such  funds  as  are  placed  in  their  hands;  they  shall  prepare  a  programme 
of  exercises  for  the  Annual  Convention;  they  shall  arrange  a  place 
for  the  Annual  Convention,  and  announce  the  same  through  the  Sec- 
retary of  the  Union  not  less  than  two  months  beforehand;  and  they 
shall  report  their  transactions  in  full  to  the  Convention.  Questions  of 
minor  importance  may  be  decided  by  the  Local  Committee,  but  on  all 
other  matters  they  shall  consult  in  regular  called  meetings  of  the  whole 
Committee  (of  which  four  shall  constitute  a  quorum),  or  shall  obtain  the 
consent  of  the  other  members  by  correspondence. 

ARTICLE  II. — Duties  of  Officers. 

It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  President  tq  preside  at  the  Annual  Convention, 
and  open  the  following  Convention  with  an  appropriate  address. 

The  Secretary  shall  keep  an  accurate  record  of  the  proceedings  of  the 
Convention,  and  shall  give  due  notice  of  the  time  and  place  of  the  suc- 
ceeding Convention. 

In  case  either  of  these  offices  shall  become  vacant  their  places  shall 
be  filled  by  the  Executive  Committee. 

ARTICLE  III.— Reports. 
Each  (Society  shall  send  an  annual  report  to  the  Convention  for  the 
year  ending  March  31st,  previous.  The  reports  shall  embrace  the  follow- 
ing topics:  1.  Date  of  organization;  2.  Present  membership;  3.  Contribu- 
tions for  the  year;  4.  Any  circumstances  of  interest  in  the  work  or 
condition  of  the  Society.  These  reports  shall  be  tabulated  and  spread 
upon  the  records  of  the  Convention. 


20  The   Wilmington   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

ARTICLE  IV.— Contingent  Fund. 
The    running    expenses    of    the    Executive    Committee    shall    he    provided 
for   by  an   Assessment   upon   each    Society  at   the   rate   of   $1.00    for   every 
ten  members. 

ARTICLE  V. — Representation. 
Each    Society    may    be    represented    in    the    Annual    Convention    by    as 
many   delegates  as  they   see  fit  to   send;    but  at  the   call   of  any  member 
the  Convention  shall  vote  by  delegations,  the  delegation  from  each  Society 
casting  one  vote. 

ARTICLE  VI. — Amendments. 
The  Constitution  or   By-Laws   may  be   amended   by  a  two-thirds  vote  of 
the   delegation  at   any  Annual   Convention. 


CHAPTER  II. 
WATERING  AND  PLANTING 

The  second  Annual  Convention  of  the  Woman's  Foreign  Mission- 
ary Union  met  again  in  the  First  Church  of  Wilmington,  June 
the  sixth,  1889.  There  were  twelve  delegates  from  eleven  societies 
present  and  four  new  societies  had  been  organized  during  the  year. 
These  were  at  Faison,  Mt.  Horeb,  Oak  Plains  and  Duplin  Roads. 
There  were  now  fifteen  societies  belonging  to  the  Union  and  they 
had  contributed  to  missions  that  year  $742.50.  At  this  meeting 
the  Union  pledged  $800  for  the  support  of  two  women  mission- 
aries. Those  assigned  us  by  the  Executive  Committee  were  Miss 
Kate  Bias  in  Brazil,  and  Miss  Robertson,  under  appointment  to 
go  to  Japan.  Miss  Bias  later  became  Mrs.  Kate  Bias  Cowan,  and 
Mr.  Cowan,  dying  in  1894,  she  continued  her  successful  teaching  and 
evangelistic  work  at  Piumhy  Station,  East  Brazil  Mission.  Miss 
Robertson  became  Mrs.  Price,  but  has  been  retired  on  account  of 
ill  health. 

Rev.  Edward  E.  Lane  addressed  this  meeting  on  his  work  in 
Brazil;  Dr.  Alexander  Sprunt  gave  us  a  sermon  at  night,  and 
Mr.  George  C.  Worth  gave  a  short  address.  He  had  given  himself 
to  Foreign  Missions,  and  six  years  later  went  to  China  as  a  Medical 
Missionary,  where  he  has  continued  to  labor  as  Dr.  Worth.  Mrs. 
Nathan  O'Berry  also  gave  an  address  at  this  meeting. 

At  this  early  date  we  had  no  secretary  of  Literature,  but ,  Miss 
Pass  offered  a  resolution  that  each  society  take  active  measures  to 
increase  the  circulation  of  "The  Missionary"  in  their  respective 
congregations. 

It  was  at  this  second  convention  that  Mrs.  Hall  instituted  the 
"Consecration  Service,"  which  our  Auxilliary  has  continued  to 
observe  with  great  spiritual  benefit  at  every  annual  meeting  since. 
It  was  at  this  first  service  that  Miss  Emma  Chadbourn  announced 
the  consecration  of  her  life  to  the  foreign  field,  which  decision  she 
carried  out  later  when  she  went  to  China  in  1895  as  Mrs.  George 
Worth.  So  it  is  a  very  natural  consequence  that  our  Union  has 
taken  a  lively  and  warmly  affectionate  interest  in  Dr.  and  Mrs. 
Worth  and  their  work  to  this  good  day. 

May  7th,  1890,  found  us  in  third  Annual  Convention  in  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  at  Goldsboro,  with  ten  delegates  present.  Miss 
Robertson,  one  of  the  missionaries  we  were  to  support,  was  present 

[211 


22  The   Wilmington   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

and  spoke.  Mrs.  Wardlow  of  our  Brazil  Mission  gave  the  mission- 
ary address.  Two  young  people's  and  thirteen  ladies'  societies  re- 
ported at  this  convention,  but  the  secretary  failed  to  record  the 
membership  and  the  amount  contributed.  This  would  indicate  that 
she  was  more  impressed  with  the  program  and  the  spiritual  side  of 
the  meeting  than  concerned  with  the  material  side.  This  1890  con- 
vention was  our  last  meeting  with  the  Goldsboro  ladies,  as  they  were 
transferred  to  the  Albemarle  Presbytery  the  next  year. 

At  the  suggestion  of  Presbytery  our  name  was  changed  to  "Pres- 
bytery's Committee  of  Foreign  Mission  Societies."  This  was  done 
to  provide  against  the  contingency  that  the  General  Assembly  at  its 
next  meeting  might  take  adverse  action  against  Woman's  Missionary 
Unions,  as  overtures  from  several  Presbyteries  opposed  to  Woman's 
Work,  had  gone  up  to  the  Assembly.  This  was  an  unnecessary  pre- 
caution, for  be  it  said  to  the  lasting  credit  of  our  church,  our  General 
Assembly  seemed  to  hear  the  Master's  voice  saying,  "Let  her  alone ; 
why  trouble  ye  her  ?  She  hath  wrought  a  good  work,"  and  it  never 
gave  utterance  on  the  question  of  Woman's  organized  work  except 
to  approve.  At  the  meeting  of  the  General  Assembly  in  1890, 
through  their  Foreign  Mission  Committee,  they  prepared  a  consti- 
tution asking  that  it  be  adopted  by  all  the  Unions  for  the  sake  of 
uniformity.     It  was  adopted  by  ours  later. 

Prior  to  this,  in  April,  1889,  the  Wilmington  Presbytery  adopted 

the  following  resolution :    "That  we  recommend  in  all  churches  the 

formation  of  Ladies  Missionary  Societies  and  their  co-operation  with 

the  Ladies  Foreign  Missionary  Union  of  Wilmington  Presbytery." 

Signed  by  J.  W.  Primrose,  F.  M.  Agent. 

April,  1889. 

Again,  April,  1890,  this  report  was  recorded: 

Our  Ladies  Missionary  Societies  have  wrought  zealously.  Their  financial 
year  has  not  yet  come  to  a  close,  but  they  have  made  regular  quarterly 
payments,  and  fully  expect  to  reach  $800.00,  the  amount  proposed. 

J.  W.  Primrose,  F.  M.  Agent. 
April,  1890. 

At  a  meeting  of  Wilmington  Presbytery,  First  Church  Wilming- 
ton, April,  1890,  Rev.  Peyton  H.  Hoge,  D.  D.,  presented  the  following 
resolution,  which  was  adopted: 

Whereas  it  appears  not  improbable  from  the  reports  of  the  different 
Presbyteries,  so  far  as  they  have  been  published,  that  the  General  Assem- 
bly may  decide  adversely  to  the  formation  and  maintenance  of  societies 
or  unions  that  extend  beyond   the   limits   of  congregations;    and,   whereas, 


Watering  and  Planting  23 

the  Presbytery  of  Wilmington  does  not  wish  to  run  counter  to  the  general 
sentiment  of  the  Church,  but  does  earnestly  desire  to  reap  the  great 
benefits  that  have  already  resulted  from  co-operation  and  united  effort  in 
the  Foreign  Mission  work  among  the  women  of  our  churches;  Therefore 
be  it  resolved, 

1.  That  the  Presbytery  of  Wilmington  appoint  annually  at  its  Spring 
meeting  a  committee  of  seven  ladies,  to  be  called  the  Woman's  Foreign 
Missionary  Committee  of  Wilmington  Presbytery,  whose  duties  shall  be: 
(1)  To  aid  the  women  of  churches  not  having  Foreign  Mission  Societies 
in  organizing  them;  (2)  To  endeavor  to  increase  the  interest  and  promote 
the  growth  of  the  Societies  already  organized;  (3)  To  concert  plans 
by  which  the  Societies  can  unite  in  the  support  of  particular  lady  mis- 
sionaries, and  to  keep  the  societies  and  missionaries  in  communication  with 
each  other,  for  the  stimulation  of  the  societies  and  the  encouragement  of 
the  missionaries;  (4)  To  aid  the  General  Assembly's  Executive  Committee 
in  selecting  suitable  lady  missionaries.  These  ends  may  carried  out  by 
correspondence,  visits  to  the  societies,  and  by  the  holding  of  annual  or  other 
conventions.  Three  of  the  Committee,  including  the  Chairman,  shall,  for 
convenience,  be  located  at  one  place,  and  may  be  constituted  a  sub-com- 
mittee to  transact  minor  business;  but  for  all  important  matters  the  con- 
sent of  the  others  should  be  obtained  in  writing,  when  a  full  meeting 
cannot  be  had.  The  contributions  of  the  societies  shall  be  sent  to  the 
Treasurer  of  the  Presbytery,  either  directly  or  through  the  offices  of  the 
church,  or  for  convenience,  through  this  Committee,  and  shall  be  trans- 
mitted by  him  to  the  Treasurer  of  the  Assembly's  Executive  Committee  on 
the  order  of  the  Chairman  of  the  Woman's  Committee.  If  any  society 
does  not,  wish  any  contribution  to  be  subject  to  this  order,  it  can  so  state  in 
sending  it.  It  is  recommended  that  the  Societies  should  tax  themselves 
at  the  rate  of  $1.00  for  every  ten  members  for  the  running  expenses  of 
the  Committee,  which  tax  shall  be  paid  directly  to  the  Treasurer  of  the 
Committee.  The  Committee  may  elect  a  Secretary  and  Treasurer  from 
their  own  number,  the  Chairman  being  designated  by  Presbytery.  The 
Committee  should  consult  with  Presbytery's  Agent  of  Foreign  Missions 
upon  any  matter  of  perplexity,  and  shall  submit  an  annual  report  of  all 
their  proceedings  to  the  Spring  meeting  of  Presbytery. 

2.  The  Committee  for  the  present  year  shall  consist  of  Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall, 
Chairman,  Mrs.  R.  N.  Sweet,  Mrs.  W.  J.  Smith,  of  Wilmington;  Miss  Mary 
Anderson,  of  Clinton,  Mrs.  Joseph  Archer,  of  Kenansville,  Mrs.  D.  G. 
Robeson,  of  Westbrook,  Mrs.  J.  P.  Fearington,  of  Faison. 

3.  The  Woman's  Foreign  Misionary  Union  as  at  present  organized  is  here- 
by dissolved — the  dissolution  to  take  effect  after  the  next  annual  Con- 
vention. 

4.  Rev.  J.  W.  Primrose,  Agent  of  Foreign  Missions,  with  Rev.  P.  H.  Hoge, 
Alternate,  is  hereby  appointed  to  visit  the  Convention  and  explain  the 
reasons  for  this  action. 

From  Minutes  of  Presbytery,  April,  1891. 

The  great  value  of  Ladies  Missionary  Societies  as  an  agency  in  this 
work  is  now  fully  recognized,  and  they  have  received  the  endorsement  of 


21  The   "Wilmington    Presbytekial   Auxiliary 

the  church,  and  are  worthy  of  our  earnest  support  and  sympathy.  The  fact 
that  they  this  year  contributed  more  than  one-third  of  the  amount  con- 
tributed, demonstrates  their  importance  and  efficiency.  The  Woman's  For- 
eign Missionary  Committee  appointed  at  the  last  spring  Presbytery  has 
wrought  zealously  and  effectively  in  accomplishing  its  objects.  The  excel- 
lent report  of  the  Chairman,  beneath  submitted,  speaks  for  itself.  There- 
fore, be  it  resolved,  That  Presbytery  acknowledge  the  valuable  labor  of 
the  Ladies  Foreign  Missionary  Committee,  commend  their  diligence,  prom- 
ise all  encouragement  and  help  in  their  work,  approve  their  report  and 
reappoint  the  present  Committee. 

W.  MoO.  Miller,  Agent,  F.  M. 
April,  1891. 

Report  of  Rev.  W.  McC.  Miller  to  Presbytery,  1892  at  Burgaw 
Church:  "The  great  value  of  the  Ladies'  Missionary  Societies 
as  an  agency  in  this  work  is  now  more  and  more  apparent."  In 
1893 :  uThe  "Woman's  F.  M.  Committee  held  two  conventions 
during  the  year,  and  your  Agent  would  hereby  commend  the  earnest 
faithfulness  of  this  Committee,  and  recommend  its  reappointment 
in  membership  and  powers." 

While  a  few  of  the  ministers  in  our  Presbytery  were  opposed 
to  women's  work,  many  were  warm  friends  throughout  this 
period  of  criticism.  We  have  already  mentioned  Rev.  P.  H.  Hoge 
as  a  moving  spirit  in  the  organization  of  our  Union,  and  always  a 
cordial  and  helpful  friend.  Mrs.  Hall  pays  grateful  tribute  to  Rev. 
W.  M.  Miller  of  Wilmington  for  his  constant  kindness  and  appreci- 
ation of  woman's  work,  stating  that  in  public  and  private  he  was 
always  ready  with  advice  and  suggestion,  laboring  faithfully  for 
the  success  of  our  work.  Other  faithful  and  enthusiastic  friends 
and  supporters  were  Rev.  Peter  Mclntyre,  Rev.  A.  D.  McClure  of 
blessed  memory,  and  Rev.  J.  W.  Primrose. 

Of  interest  in  this  connection  are  the  following  extracts  from  a 
letter  to  Mrs.  B.  P.  Hall,  dated  Nashville,  Tenn.,  Nov.  28,  1890. 

"I  have  received  today  your  letter  enclosing  $2.00  for  Missionary  Leaflets, 
I  have  made  a  selection  which  I  hope  you  will  find  to  be  very  useful  in 
your  visiting  of  the  churches.  Most  of  these  selected  have  special  reference 
to  the  work  of  the  ladies'  societies.  You  will  also  find  in  the  package 
a  few  leaflets  addressed  especially  to  ministers.  It  may  be  that  in  some 
of  the  churches  the  visiting  Committee  may  hand  a  leaflet  to  the  pastor, 
without  giving  offense,  which  may  do  good. 

"Your  Synod  is  taking  the  lead  in  our  foreign  mission  work.  May  our 
^Master  make  you  in  all  things  a  noble  example  to  the  whole  church. 

Respectfully  yours, 

M.  H.  Houston." 


Watering  and  Planting  25 

June,  1891,  found  us  in  annual  session  at  Wallace,  then  Duplin 
Roads,  with,  eleven  delegates  present.  Dr.  DuBose,  of  Soochoo, 
China,  gave  the  missionary  address.  Mr.  Miller  also  addressed  the 
Union.  Pledges  amounting  to  $785.00  were  made  toward  the  now 
necessary  $1,100.00,  for  the  support  of  our  two  missionaries.  Miss 
Anderson  resigned  as  secretary,  and  Mrs.  W.  J.  Smith  was  appointed 
to  fill  the  vacancy. 

Mrs.  DuBose  had  been  invited  to  make  the  address  at  this  meeting, 
and  had  accepted  the  invitation,  but  as  she  was  at  her  brother's 
home  in  Mecklenburg  Presbytery,  and  as  he  was  one  of  the  ministers 
opposed  to  women's  unions,  she  did  not  come  to  us,  but  sent  Mr. 
DuBose,  while  she  went  to  Davidson  College  to  speak  to  the  men ! 

Definite  steps  were  taken  at  this  meeting  looking  to  the  organiza- 
tion of  societies  in  all  the  churches  of  the  Presbytery.  A  visiting 
committee  was  appointed  and  asked  to  find  out  the  churches  in  our 
Presbytery  having  no  woman's  society,  and  to  visit  the  same  and 
help  them  to  organize. 

It  was  at  this  meeting  that  the  practical  suggestion  was  made  by 
Mrs.  S.  G.  Lewis,  that  each  society  pay  the  expenses  of  a  delegate 
to  the  Union,  a  goal  not  yet  reached  by  all  our  auxiliaries. 

June  7th,  1892,  the  Union  met  with  the  Whiteville  society  as 
hostess.  Though  only  five  delegates  were  present,  ten  societies  sent 
reports,  and  their  contributions  amounted  to  $1,075.00,  some  nearly 
doubling  the  contributions  of  the  previous  year.  Mrs. .  Hall  being 
detained  on  account  of  illness,  Mrs.  W.  J.  Smith  presided  at  the 
meeting,  and  Mrs.  J.  C.  Powell  acted  as  secretary  pro  tern. 

Upon  recommendation  of  the  president  and  the  executive  com- 
mittee, the  societies  were  urged  to  have  local  conventions  and  visits 
from  the  executive  committee.  There  was  no  foreign  missionary 
present  at  this  meeting  but  Dr.  Hoge  delivered  a  sermon  and  Dr. 
McClure  was  also  present. 

June  the  13th,  1893,  the  convention  was  held  at  Faison.  The 
ministers  present  were  Rev.  Mclntyre  and  Rev.  A.  D.  McClure. 
Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall  presided  and  the  Union  now  embraced  fourteen 
societies.  There  were  reports  from  twelve  and  eleven  delegate 
were  present.  South  River  was  added  as  a  new  society.  Dr.  Butler 
of  Brazil,  was  the  foreign  mission  speaker  at  this  meeting. 

Dr.  McClure  had  just  returned  from  a  meeting  of  the  General 
Assembly  and  brought  from  that  court  approval  and  official  endorse- 
ment of  woman's  work.  The  contributions  this  year  amounted  to 
twelve  hundred  and  seventeen  dollars.     Mrs.  Hall  states  that  the 


26  The   Wilmington"   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

meeting  owed  much  of  its  success  to  Mrs.  Fearington,  who  was 
Miss  Pass,  at  our  first  meeting  of  the  Union,  and  who  was  always 
a  helpful  and  enthusiastic  member  of  the  executive  committee  till 
she  moved  to  Winston. 

June  the  7th,  1894,  the  Union  was  held  at  the  Grove  church  at 
Kenansville.  Five  ministers  were  present,  these  being  Reverends 
Mclntyre,  McMillan,  McClure,  Sampson  and  Grinnan.  The  last 
two  were  missionaries,  and  each  delivered  an  address  at  this  meeting. 
There  were  seven  delegates  present  and  ten  societies  reported.  The 
treasurer's  report  showed  that  they  had  all  paid  their  pledges.  This 
year  there  were  eighteen  societies  in  the  Union,  the  largest  num- 
bered during  Mrs.  Hall's  administration. 

The  suggestion  was  made  at  this  meeting  that  a  committee  be 
appointed  in  each  church  of  the  Presbytery  to  place  the  call  of  the 
mission  field  before  the  young  people  by  seeing  that  "The  Mission- 
ary" came  into  the  home  of  every  family.  So,  eighteen  years  ago 
our  Union  stood  for  "Church  Paper  Week." 

Mrs.  W.  J.  Smith  resigned  as  secretary  at  this  meeting,  since 
she  was  taking  up  her  residence  in  South  Carolina.  For  four 
years  we  were  without  a  secretary.  Mrs.  Fearington  acted  as  secre- 
tary pro  tern,  at  the  1894  meeting,  and  Miss  P.  Britt  at  the  1895 
meeting.  The  minutes  of  this  convention  record  the  first  service 
given  the  young  people,  with  Messrs.  Grinnan  and  Sampson  taking 
part  and  adding  to  the  interest  by  a  display  of  curios  from  China 
and  Japan. 

An  interesting  service  was  a  missionary  palaver  conducted  by  the 
two  missionaries  and  the  three  ministers,  with  the  audience  asking 
questions. 

The  contributions  this  year  amounted  to  one  thousand  and  fifty- 
nine  dollars.  Mrs.  Archer  suggested  that  we  have  two  meetings 
a  year,  the  second  meeting  to  be  held  in  the  fall  or  winter.  ISTo 
action  was  taken  on  the  suggestion. 

From  the  minutes  of  Presbytery  we  get  the  information  from 
Mrs.  Hall's  report  to  Presbytery  that  Mrs.  Randolph  had  been  in- 
vited to  address  this  Convention,  but  was  unable  to  come  before 
winter.  So  a  second  meeting  was  held  in  Wilmington  (in  the  fall 
or  winter)  and  the  societies  invited.  There  was  no  further  report 
of  this  winter  meeting. 

Mrs.  Hall  tells  us  that  this  1894  meeting  was  unusual  in  the 
number  of  people  at  the  public  services  and  in  the  interest  mani- 
fested. 


Watering  and  Planting  27 

In  June,  1895,  the  Union  met  in  St.  Andrew's  church,  Wilmington, 
with  only  five  delegates  present  and  eight  societies  reporting.  These 
faithful  five  who  were  present  to  keep  the  torch  of  woman's  work 
alive  in  this  Presbytery  were :  Mrs.  Pi.  W.  Price  of  First  Church, 
Wilmington,  Miss  P.  Britt  of  St.  Andrew's  Church,  Wilmington, 
Miss  Janie  Cromartie  of  South  River,  Mrs.  N.  H.  Sprunt  of  Grove 
church,  Kenansville  and  Miss  Bell  Bowen  of  Duplin  Roads 
(Wallace).  Only  two  hundred  and  sixty  eight  dollars  in  gifts  was 
reported,  though  the  First  Church  did  not  report  its  gift.  This 
was  a  year  of  general  financial  depression  which  in  a  measure  ac- 
counted for  the  meager  attendance  and  the  poor  financial  report. 

This  meeting  adjourned  after  one  afternoon  session,  and  Mr. 
G.  W.  Painter  of  our  China  mission  gave  the  missionary  address  of 
the  evening.  It  was  a  time  of  discouragement  to  our  faithful 
president  and  her  co-workers.  The  responsibility  for  the  Union 
and  the  great  object  that  it  represented  must  have  borne  heavily 
upon  the  heart  and  mind  of  our  consecrated  president  at  that  time. 
One  of  less  faith  and  courage  would  doubtless  have  given  up  the 
fight.  Mrs.  Hall,  writing  of  this  meeting,  says:  "There  was  such  a 
small  attendance  and  so  little  interest  that  those  present  discussed 
the  advisability  of  holding  our  meetings  at  the  same  time  and  place 
as  Presbytery,  hoping  for  better  attendance."  It  was  so  decided 
and  we  find  the  Union  meeting  with  Presbytery  four  years,  but 
without  the  hoped  for  interest  or  attendance.  These  were  as  follows  : 
In  1896  at  Wilmington  First  Church;  no  record  of  delegates  in 
attendance;  seven  reports  sent  in;  $751.00  contributed.  In  1897 
at  Clarkton ;  six  delegates  present ;  seven  reports  were  presented, 
and  $618.00  contributed.  Mr.  Lacanster,  returned  missionary  from 
China,  addressed  this  meeting.  Kew  Hope  Society  joined  the  Union 
at  this  meeting  and  sent  two  delegates,  Miss  Hattie  McKeithan 
and  Mrs.  Jackson  Johnson.  The  other  four  delegates  were  from 
the  Whiteville  society  and  constituted  their  entire  membership.  In 
1898  at  Burgaw;  reports  from  nine  societies;  twelve  delegates 
present;  a  regular  program  carried  out,  and  the  missionary  address 
given  by  Mr.  Fulton  of  Japan.  The  Union  had  been  without  a  regu- 
lar secretary  for  four  years,  but  at  this  meeting  Mrs.  E.  J.  Fennell 
was  appointed  secretary  and  accepted.  Contributions  reported 
for  this  year,  $558.00.  In  1899,  in  St.  Andrew's  Church,  Wilming- 
ton; fourteen  delegates  present;  twelve  societies  reported  $487.00 
contributed.  The  report  of  the  number  of  members  at  this  time 
was  incomplete.  At  this  meeting  we  had  reports  from  children's 
societies  and  Dr.  Chester,  who  was  attending  Presbytery,  addressed 


28  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

the  Union  in  the  afternoon.  Mrs.  E.  A.  McKae,  of  sainted  memory, 
and  Mrs.  Jackson  Johnson  were  present,  and  Mrs.  Hall  says,  "by 
their  presence  and  participation  cheered  the  heart  of  the  President, 
and  made  her  feel  that  the  Union  was  not  a  failure  after  all,  as  it 
had  seemed  to  be  for  the  last  few  years." 

The  "Mother  of  our  Presbyterial,"  as  Mrs.  Hall  will  always  be 
affectionately  remembered,  was  much  in  prayer  during  these  dark 
days,  and  these  two  wonderful  helpers  were  sent  in  direct  answer 
to  prayer. 

It  was  decided  at  this  time  not  to  meet  again  with  Presbytery,  so 
the  date  of  the  next  meeting  was  changed  to  June,  and  an  invita- 
tion from  the  Caswell  Society  to  meet  with  them  in  1900  was  extend- 
ed through  Miss  Eliza  Murphy  and  accepted.  This  society  had  just 
been  received  into  the  Union,  though  it  was  organized  in  1891. 
When  Miss  Murphy,  upon  her  return,  announced  to  her  society  that 
she  had  invited  the  Union  to  meet  with  them,  there  was  consterna- 
tion in  the  camp.  That  a  weak  society  in  a  small  church  should 
undertake  to  entertain  the  Union  and  carry  out  the  large  program 
that  Miss  Murphy  had  in  mind  and  make  it  a  success,  seemed  a  gigan- 
tic task.  But  Miss  Murphy,  knowing  how  much  benefit  her  auxil- 
iary would  receive  from  such  a  meeting,  held  her  ground,  and  said 
the  invitation  was  going  to  hold  if  she  had  to  put  up  tents  in  her 
own  grove  to  take  care  of  the  delegates.  Of  course  she  "triumphed 
gloriously,"  and  soon  her  auxiliary  was  working  enthusiastically, 
assisted  most  ably  by  the  pastor,  Mr.  Curtis,  in  the  preliminary  work. 

For  fully  five  years  before  Caswell  organized,  one  of  the  leading 
women  of  the  church,  Mrs.  J.  1ST.  Henry,  relates  that  she  was  accus- 
tomed to  getting  letters  regularly  from  Mrs.  Hall  urging  organiza- 
tion, so  finally  she  said  to  Miss  Murphy,  "We  might  as  well  organ- 
ize a  missionary  society  because  Mrs.  Hall  is  not  going  to  let  up 
till  we  do,"  "Because  this  widow  troubleth  me."  This  illustrates 
Mrs.  Hall's  patience  and  persistence  in  the  pursuit  of  a  purpose,  and 
the  enthusiastic  meeting  at  the  Caswell  church  was  the  fulfillment 
of  the  promise,  "Let  us  not  be  weary  in  well  doing  for  in  due 
season  we  shall  reap  if  we  faint  not." 

So  it  transpired  that  the  thirteenth  annual  meeting  at  the  Caswell 
church  was  a  most  successful  one  as  compared  with  the  four  preced- 
ing ones.  The)  Executive  Committee  and  nine  official  delegates  were 
present  from  the  eleven  societies  then  composing  the  Union,  besides 
a  number  of  visitors  from  the  societies  whose  names  appeared  on  the 
program.     Eleven  societies  reported  214  members,  and  $504.00  in 


Watering  and  Planting  29 

contributions.  Five  of  these  eleven,  viz :  Burgaw,  Kenansville,  St. 
Andrews,  Whiteville  and  Wilmington,  First  Church,  were  charter 
members  of  the  Union  of  1888.  Two  of  the  original  eleven  had 
been  lost  when  Goldsboro  went  to  Albemarle  Presbytery,  and  the 
others  had  "fallen  on  sleep,"  while  new  ones  had  arisen  to  take  their 
places. 

Dr.  D.  C  Rankin,  Assembly's  Foreign  Mission  Secretary  and 
editor  of  "The  Missionary,"  was  present,  addressed  the  Union  and 
helped  in  the  conferences.  He  was  a  man  of  wonderful  personality, 
and  coming  straight  from  the  Eucumenical  Conference  in  New 
York,  afire  with  missionary  zeal,  he  alone  was  enough  to  put  life 
into  any  organization.  Rev.  E.  E.  Lane,  son  of  the  missionary  who 
was  at  our  second  meeting  in  1889,  gave  the  opening  address.  Mr. 
Curtis,  pastor  of  the  church,  and  Miss  Eliza  Murphy  had  thorough- 
ly advertised  the  meeting,  and  Mrs.  Hall,  reporting  it,  said,  "All 
the  people  in  the  country  seemed  to  have  given  up  their  business  to 
come  to  this  meeting." 

At  the  close  of  the  convention  Mrs.  Hall  tendered  her  resigna- 
tion as  president,  after  twelve  years  of  faithful,  zealous,  often  dis- 
couraged, but  ever  untiring  service.  The  Union  passed  resolutions 
of  regret  at  her  withdrawal  from  the  presidency,  of  love  and  esteem 
for  her  devoted  and  willing  service,  and  of  appreciation  for  her  good 
work  in  meeting  and  overcoming  the  many  difficulties  she  had  en- 
countered in  her  efforts?  to  place  the  Union  on  a  firm  and  permanent 
basis.  She  was  retained  in  the  service  of  the  Union  as  a  member 
of  the  Executive  Committee. 

Mrs.  Jackson  Johnson  was  elected  president ;  Miss  Lillie  Boney 
and  Miss  Annie  Graham,  secretaries.  The  office  of  vice-president 
was  created  at  this  meeting  and  Miss  Eliza  Murphy  elected  to  serve 
in  that  capacity. 

Mrs.  R.  E".  Sweet  having  died  since  the  last  meeting,  resolutions 
of  respect  to  her  memory  were  adopted  by  the  Union. 

It  was  on  the  night  previous  to  one  of  these  meetings  of  the 
Union  with  Presbytery  that  the  following  incident  took  place.  A 
certain  minister,  on  his  way  to  Presbytery,  was  spending  the  night 
in  Mrs.  Hall's  home.  In  talking  over  the  work,  Mrs.  Hall  said 
that  there  was  so  little  interest  and  so  much  opposition  from  the 
men,  that  she  was  considering  the  advisability  of  the  Union's  dis- 
banding. This  minister  being  one  of  those  who  did  not  favor 
woman's  work,  heartily  agreed.  Whereupon  Mrs.  Hall  brought  a 
determined  foot  down  with  a  resounding  thump,  and  laconically  ex- 


30  The   Wilmington   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

claimed,  "Well,  it  shan't ! "  That  "shan't"  made  history,  and  that 
minister  did  woman's  work  in  this  Presbytery  more  good  than  he 
intended,  for  he  put  the  determination  into  the  heart  of  our  leader 
that  opposition  often  brings  to  the  high-spirited,  and  she  decided, 
"Better,  like  Hector,  in  the  field  to  die, 
Than  like  a  perfumed  Paris,  turn  and  fly." 

Truly,  "courage  mounteth  with  occasion,"  and  like  David  of  old, 
she  resolved :  "Thy  servant  shall  go  and  fight  with  this  Philistine." 

There  is  no  mention  in  the  minutes  of  Executive  Committee 
meetings  during  Mrs.  Hall's  administration,  but  they  were  doubt- 
less held  regularly.  As  the  minutes  were  not  printed  until  1901, 
many  things  historically  interesting  were  omitted  from  the  written 
minutes.  It  is  a  distinct  loss  that  only  two  of  Mrs.  Hall's  annual 
addresses  have  come  down  to  us.  These  are  so  characteristic  that 
it  is  a  joy  to  preserve  them  in  a  work  of  this  kind. 

Convention  of  F.  M.  Societies  at  Goldsboro,  1890. 

This  is  the  third  meeting  of  the  Fw  M.  Societies  of  Wilmington  Presbytery 
in  Convention,  and  we  are  especially  glad  to  meet  in  Goldsboro  this  year 
as  besides  being  a  first  visit  it  will  also  be  a  farewell,  the  new  Presby- 
tery of  Albemarle  claiming  the  society  now. 

Though  we  are  sorry  to  part  with  the  ladies  of  Goldsboro  we  hope  the 
change  will  not  lessen  our  interest  in  each  other,  and  while  they  devote 
their  energies  towards  helping  to  increase  the  number  of  societies  and  to 
deepening  the  interest  in  the  cause  of  missions  throughout  the  new  Presby- 
tery, we  would  pray  that  God's  blessings  may  go  with  them  to  their  new 
field  and  hope  that,  however  great  their  progress  in  the  work,  that  ours 
may  keep  up  with  it. 

As  Dr.  Hoge  will  explain  to  you  the  action  of  Presbytery  in  taking  us 
under  its  immediate  care  and  appointing  our  committees,  I  will  say  nothing 
about  it,  except  to  express  my  belief  that  this  action  will  be  very  gratifying 
to  many  ladies  and  will  doubtless  add  to  the  efficiency  of  our  work. 

Now  that  we  are  organized  under  the  authority  of  Presbytery  and  have 
our  own  missionary  to  inspire  us,  we  ought  to  do  more  than  ever  before. 

I  hoped  to  have  a  letter  from  Miss  Bias,  but  the  convention  being  held 
earlier  this  year,  I  have  not  given  it  time  to  reach  us.  Mrs.  Fearington  has, 
however,  promised  me  a  letter  from  Miss  Bias  to  her,  written  some  years 
ago,  which  will  doubtless  serve  to  make  you  more  interested  in  her  and 
better  acquainted  with  her  work,  and  when  her  letter  arrives  I  will  have 
it  copied  and  sent  to  the  societies.  You  remember  we  had  Mr,  Lane  with  us 
at  our  last  convention,  and  those  who  heard  him  will  not  forget  his  praise 
of  Miss  Bias,  who  proved  herself  such  a  worthy  assistant  to  Miss  Kemper, 
and  was  so  devoted  to  her  work  during  the  epidemic  of  Yellow  Fever. 
A  sad  bit  of  news  from  Campinas  is  the  death  of  Mr.  Dabney  on  the 
eve  of  his  return  home. 


Watering  and  Planting  31 

We  are  happy  today  to  have  with  us  another  missionary,  who  can  not 
only  tell  us  of  the  work  in  Brazil,  but  also  interesting  news  from  our 
own  State  of  several  who  are  getting  ready  to  go  as  missionaries.  Mrs. 
Wardlow  expects  to  leave  for  Brazil  very  soon  and  I  know  you  will  all  be 
glad  to  send  greetings  to  our  friends  at  Cearia.  We  have  been  praying  that 
the  Lord  of  the  harvest  would  send  forth  laborers  into  His  harvest  and 
He  is  answering  our  prayer. 

Now  our  conduct  will  show  to  ourselves  whether  we  are  in  earnest  or 
not.  Sometimes  it  seems  that  we  really  did  not  want  what  we  ask  for, 
for  when  God  opens  His  hand  and  gives  us  our  desire  we  often  do  not 
recognize  it,  and  are  slow  to  appropriate  it.  The  church  has  so  often 
to  call  on  Christians  for  more  money  to  send  those  who  offer  to  go,  as 
we  believe,  in  answer  to  our  prayers. 

When  I  wrote  to  Dr.  Houston  asking  that  the  contributions  of  the  Union 
should  be  applied  to  the  support  of  Miss  Bias,  and  Miss  Robertson  when 
she  should  be  appointed,  he  wrote — "Miss  Robertson  has  already  been  ap- 
pointed by  the  Executive  Committee  a  missioner  to  Japan  to  go  out  in  the 
Fall  if  the  state  of  the  treasury  will  permit.  This  condition  was  mentioned 
because  we  have  had  fourteen  (14)  missionaries  added  to  our  force  in  the 
Foreign  field  during  the  last  year,  and  we  have  ten  other  missionaries,  in- 
cluding Miss  Robertson,  now  under  appointment.  The  resources  of  our 
Foreign  missionary  work  will  therefore  be  taxed  to  their  utmost  during  the 
present  year.  This  is  a  loud  call,  I  think,  from  the  Master  to  all  our  churches 
to  rally  to  the  support  of  the  work  as  never  before.  He  has  been  ex- 
ceedingly good  to  us  during  the  past  year.  All  the  expenses  of  the 
work  have  been  met  without  borrowing  a  dollar  from  any  quarter.  This 
was  owing  in  part  to  an  increase  in  receipts  from  legacies,  which  we 
can  hardly  expect  to  be  repeated  another  year.  The  churches,  however, 
can  easjly  make  up  all  that  is  needed  for  their  work  if  they  only  have  a 
ready  mind.  Let  us  pray  earnestly  that  this  may  be  the  case.  The  goodness 
of  our  Master  to  us  during  the  past  year  should  certainly  encourage  us 
to  expect  great  things  from  Him  and  to  attempt  great  things  for  Him." 
I  have  quoted  Dr.  Houston  for  the  benefit  of  us  all.  Mrs.  Wardlaw  will 
tell  us,  I  hope,  of  several  North  Carolinians  who  expect  to  go  to  Brazil, 
and  it  is  a  matter  of  thanksgiving  that  our  own  State  is  coming  forward 
and  offering  her  own  sons  and  daughters  as  missionaries. 

Now  the  question  is,  What  will  we  do  with  them?  Accept  them  as  sent 
from  God  and  contribute  what  we  can  to  send  the  Gospel  by  their  hands, 
or  stand  idly  back,  saying,  in  effect,  we  did  not  mean  what  we  said 
when  we  asked  for  more  laborers.  We  have  as  much  as  we  can  do  to 
care  for  those  we  have.  Oh,  let  us  not  mock  God  by  asking  for  what  we 
don't  want.  The  women  of  our  State  have  a  great  responsibility  upon 
them.  Their  power  is  felt  not  only  in  the  heathen  world  but  in  the  church 
at  home.  At  the  last  meeting  of  Presbytery  some  of  the  churches  had 
unusually  good  reports  of  contributions  during  the  year,  and  I  notice  that 
those  were  the  churches  that  had  Ladies'  Societies  at  work. 

The  ministers  themselves  feel  encouraged  and  strengthened  and  as  a  matter 
of  course  it  does  our  missionaries  good  to  know  that  loving  hearts  are 
praying   for   them   and    loving   hands   working   for   them    while    they    are 


32  The   "Wilaiixgtox    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

far   away  from   old   ties   of   home   and    friends,    and    we   are   strengthened 
ourselves. 

Now  for  the  work  that  is  nearest  our  hands,  and  let  us  do  it  with  all 
our  might.  Let  each  one  of  us  feel  responsible  for  the  success  of  the 
Union. 

We  pledged  ourselves  the  past  year  to  raise  $800.  That  is  done, 
I  believe,  but  as  it  could  not  be  appropriated  in  the  way  we  expected, 
we  will  have  to  work  harder  and  do  all  we  can  to  press  others  into  the 
service,  as  we  need  $300  more  if  we  keep  up  with  what  we  want  to  do, 
which  is  to  claim  the  honor  of  contributing  the  whole  support  of  Miss 
Robertson  and  Miss  Bias. 

We  can  do  it  if  every  member  of  each  society  will  do  what  she  can; 
in  fact  we  could  do  more.     Will  we  be  satisfied  with  less? 

"Whatsoever  He  saith  unto  you  do  it,"  and  the  water  we  draw  in  His 
cause  will  become  wine  in  the  drawing. 

May  we  each  be  able  to  say  "I  know  whom  I  believe,"  and  working  in  His 
strength  prove  that  all  things  are  possible  to  him  that  believeth." 

(Thanking  you  again  for  your  welcome.) 

Report  of  Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall  to  the  Union,  June  28,  1900. 

It  is  now  twelve  years  since  this  Foreign  Missionary  Union  of  Wil- 
mington Presbytery  was  organized  in  Wilmington,  during  a  visit  of  our 
honored  missionaries,  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Stuart,  of  China.  There  are  some 
here  now,  more  than  I  know,  I  hope,  who  were  at  that  first  meeting,  and 
can  testify  to  the  enthusiasm  manifested,  and  the  general  enjoyment  in 
the  organization  of  the  work.  It  was  at  this  meeting  that  our  young 
member,  who  has  since  been  in  China  for  several  years,  first  committed 
herself  to  the  foreign  work.  It  was  at  this  meeting,  too,  that  the  Ladies 
Foreign  Missionary  Society  of  the  First  Church  of  Wilmington,  as  at 
present  constituted,  was  formed,  and  it  has  done  much  good  work  since, 
though  it  has  come  through  vicissitudes  that  affect  not  only  itself,  but 
this  Union   as   well. 

The  years  immediately  following  the  organization  were  working  years 
for  the  Union,  and  I  have  in  the  Minutes  of  Presbytery,  for  the  year  1891, 
the  published  report  of  your  Chairman,  to  Presbytery,  for  the  year  end- 
ing March  31,  1891,  which  I  would  like  to  read  for  your  information, 
as  it  is  the  only  published  report  I  have  access  to. 

I  would  remind  you  that  we  organized  as  the  Ladies  Foreign  Mission- 
ary Union  of  Wilmington  Presbytery,  and  we  were  the  second  Union  in 
the  field,  East  Hanover  being  less  than  a  month  before  us.  There  was 
a  feeling  in  the  air,  however,  during  the  following  winter,  that  the 
women  of  our  Southern  Presbyterian  Church  were  reaching  out  to  do 
more  work  than  legitimately  belonged  to  them,  and  some  of  our  Presby- 
teries were  overturing  the  General  Assembly  to  have  them  stopped. 
The  women  of  Wilmington  Presbytery  being  very  law  abiding  and  very 
much  afraid  of  doing  anything  that  would  seem  to  call  in  question  the 
authority  of  Presbytery,  there  seemed  to  be   a  reason  for  our  Presbytery 


Watering  and  Planting  33 

to  make  some  deliverance  in  view  of  a  possible  adverse  decision  of  the 
General  Assembly  to  the  existence  of  unions  or  societies  that  extend 
beyond  the  limits  of  congregations. 

So,  at  the  Spring  meeting  of  1890,  it  was  resolved: 

"That  the  Presbytery  of  "Wilmington  appoint  annually,  at  its  Spring 
meeting,  a  committee  of  seven  ladies,  to  be  called  the  Woman's  Foreign 
Missionary  Committee  of  Wilmington  Presbytery,  whose  duties  shall  be,  etc. 

"The  Committee  for  the  present  year  shall  consist  of:  Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall, 
Chairman;  Mrs.  R.  N.  Sweet,  and  Mrs.  W.  J.  Smith,  of  Wilmington,  Miss 
Mary  Anderson,  of  Clinton,  Mrs.  Joseph  Archer,  of  Kenansville,  Mrs. 
D.  G.  Robeson,  of  Westbrook,  and  Mrs.  Fearington,  of  Faison,  and  that 
the  Union,  as  now  constituted,  be  dissolved." 

There  are  only  two  of  the  original  Committee  left  to  serve  now, 
though  the  places  have  been  filled  by  others,  except  one,  and  in  the 
discussion  which  is  on  the  program,  as  to,  "What  changes  can  we  make 
to  increase  the  influence  and  usefulness  of  the  Union?"  I  hope  you  will 
discuss  thoroughly  the  change  of  officers,  and  the  available  material  which 
has  not  been  brought  out  yet.  Also,  whether  it  is  better,  as  some  of  us 
think,  to  change  back  to  our  original  name,  as  we  have  always  called 
ourselves  the  Union  of  Wilmington  Presbytery. 

Presbytery  will  be  glad  to  sanction  anything  we  may  do  now,  as  in 
these  past  years,  nothing  has  encouraged  the  officers  of  our  church  more 
than  the  development  of  the  work  by  the  women.  Our  Secretary  is 
in  full  accord  with  it,  as  is  also  the  Editor  of  "The  Missionary,"  who  is 
with  us  at  this  meeting.  (This  is  the  report  just  after  the  change  was 
made.) 

It  has  seemed  to  me  desirable  to  give  you  this  sketch  of  our  earlier 
years,  partly  to  call  your  attention  to  the  larger  work  which  we  did  then, 
and  to  ask  if  the  time  has  not  come  to  gather  up  our  forces,  take  account 
of  them  and  of  the  work  which  is  ours  to  do,  with  them,  and  see  that 
we  use  them  to  the  best  advantage.  There  is  plenty  of  material  in  this 
Presbytery  to  devise,  and  plenty  to  carry  out  plans,  so  let  us  pray  for 
God's  guidance,  and   go   forward. 

We  should  pray  for  God's  guidance,  and  then  be  on  the  lookout  to  see  how 
He  leads  us,  not  say,  "I'll  do  what  you  want  me  to  do,  dear  Lord,  I'll 
say  what  you  want  me  to  say,"  and  then  do  what  we  are  pretty  sure, 
without  asking,  He  does  not  want  us  to  do,  and  say  what  He  never  wants 
anyone  to  say,  "I  can't."  We  are  all  here  to  use  the  talents  He  gives 
us,  and  to  every  one  He  has  given  one  talent,  if  not  many,  and  we  know 
not  how  long  we  may  keep  them.  We  have  no  choice,  but  must  use 
them  or  be  condemned.  , 

Since  we  last  met  one  of  our  faithful  ones  has  been  called  up  higher, 
to  give  account  of  how  she  used  hers,  and  what  a  joy  it  must  have  been 
to  her  to  go  from  work  to  reward.  Mrs.  Sweet  was  one  of  the  members 
of  this  Union,  one  of  the  Executive  Committee,  and  she  was  always 
interested  in  its  work.  To  her  was  given  a  place  on  the  program,  and 
it  would  have  been  filled,  I  have  no  doubt,  to  the  best  of  her  ability. 
3 


34  The   Wilmington    Pbesbytebial   Auxiliary 

She  was  teacher  in  Sunday  School  and  spent  much  of  her  time  in  study  and 
preparation  for  that,  and  she  was  also  much  interested  in  the  work  of 
the  King's  Daughters,  and  was  State  Secretary  for  some  years.  She 
had  been  at  home  only  a  few  days  from  the  Annual  meeting,  and  had, 
the  day  she  died,  attended  the  meeting  of  her  circle  and  given  her  report. 
They  say  it  was  a  very  interesting  meeting,  and  she  was  much  moved.  She 
always  strived  to  develop  the  spiritual  side  of  every  work,  and  the  desire 
was  specially  manifest  on  that  day.  A  friend  parted  with  her  at  the 
door  of  her  home,  and  in  fifteen  minutes  afterwards  she  was  found 
dead — with  her  bonnet  still  on  and  her  parasol  beside  her.  What  if  we 
were  called  in  the  same  way?  Would  we  be  ready  as  she  was?  Let 
us  be  up  and  doing  while  we  may,  feeling  that  we  cannot  do  too 
much,  but  may  be  sorry  one  day  that  we  did  not  do  more,  and  may  God 
bless  and  accept  our  work  for  the  coming  year,  working  in  us  to  will 
and  to  do  of  His  good  pleasure. 

This,  1900,  meeting  closed  Mrs.  Hall's  twelve  years  of  arduous 
and  continuous  service  as  president  of  the  Union.  Truly  she  had 
borne  the  heat  and  burden  of  the  day  in  these  first  critical,  forma- 
tive years,  when  our  women  were  in  the  primer  stage  of  systematic 
giving,  regular  meetings,  program  building,  accurate  reporting  and 
the  like;  and  when  not  only  active  opposition  of  church  sessions, 
but  the  more  deadly  inactive  indifference  of  church  women,  had 
to  be  combatted.  She  kept  the  missionary  fires  alight  in  our  Pres- 
byterial  even  in  the  darkest  and  stormiest  years.  Truly  it  could 
have  been  said  of  her  as  of  Solomon's  model  woman,  "Her  candle 
goeth  not  out  by  night."  "While  the  societies  in  the  Union  had 
made  no  appreciable  progress  in  numbers  during  these  years,  yet 
the  gifts  in  the  most  inactive  years,  with  the  exception  of  1895, 
more  than  doubled  the  amount  reported  at  the  organization  of  the 
Union.  In  the  majority  of  the  years  the  increase  in  gifts  was  from 
300  to  500  per  cent.  Moreover  the  leaven  of  unselfish,  devoted 
service  and  consecrated  prayer  was  at  work,  and  the  seed  then  sown 
bore  abundant  harvest  in  later  years. 

Her  ambition  was  to  have  a  missionary  society  in  every  church 
and  every  woman  a  member  of  the  society.  She  retired  from  the 
active  leadership  of  the  Union,  like  the  faithful  one  of  old,  "not 
having  received  the  promises  but  beholding  them  afar." 


Mks.  Jackson  Johnson, 

Second  President  of  the  Presbyterial, 
1900-1913. 


CHAPTEK  III. 
GROWTH  AND  EXPANSION 

June  18  and  19,  1901,  the  Woman's  Foreign  Missionary  Union 
of  Wilmington  Presbytery  met  in  Warsaw,  with  Mrs.  Jackson  John- 
son, our  new  president,  presiding.  Ten  societies  reported  at  this, 
representing  a  membership  of  233,  with  contributions  aggregating 
$629.00. 

Mrs.  T.  B.  Peirce  was  elected  second  vice-president.  Mesdames 
G.  W.  McMillan,  W.  T.  Bannerman  and  B.  B.  Witherington  were 
added  to  the  Executive  Committee.  Dr.  George  Butler  gave  the 
foreign  mission  address,  on  his  work  in  Brazil. 

The  outstanding  feature  of  the  meeting  was  the  wonderful  inspi- 
rational address  by  Dr.  J.  M.  Wells,  taking  as  his  theme  the 
forward  movement  in  missions,  its  importance,  opportuneness  and 
significance.  His  text  was  from  II  Samuel,  5  :24 :  "And  let  it  be 
when  thou  hearest  the  sound  of  a  going  in  the  tops  of  the  mulberry 
trees,  that  then  thou  shalt  bestir  thyself:  for  then  shall  the  Lord 
go  out  before  thee,  to  smite  the  host  of  the  Philistines."  It  was 
delivered  with  great  earnestness  and  power,  and  is  still  talked  of 
by  those  present  at  that  meeting. 

During  the  two  days'  meeting,  besides  the  business  reports,  eight 
papers  were  read  on  mission  topics  of  interest  to  the  Union. 

Recording  this  meeting,  our  first  printed  Minutes  appear,  a  modest 
leaflet  of  fouri  pages  and  binding,  containing  the  condensed  Minutes, 
the  treasurer's  report  and  a  statistical  table  of  the  societies  re- 
porting. 

In  1902  the  Union  met  July  9th  and  10th,  at  South  River  Church. 
Mrs.  Johnson  having  been  detained  by  illness,  First  Vice-President 
Miss  Eliza  Murphy  presided.  Fifteen  societies  sent  in  reports, 
the  new  ones  being  Chadbourn,  Oak  Plains,  Elizabeth  McRae  of 
First  Church,  Wilmington,  and  Cronly  Young  People's  Society. 
Burgaw  and  Kenansville  did  not  appear  on  the  list  this  year,  but 
Black  River,  Clinton,  Faison,  Kerr  and  Caswell  Young  People 
reappear.  We  now  had  reported  319  members,  contributing 
$678.00,  an  increase  of  $50.00  over  the  previous  year.  The  pres- 
ident's report  showed  that  Wilmington  First  Church  had  the  largest 
gain  in  members  (seven),  and  Whiteville  showed  the  largest  average 
amount  per  member,    ($5.50).     The  report  showed  also  that  our 

[35] 


36  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

president  had  been  doing  active  work,  and  she  gave  the  following 
excellent  recommendations :  First,  that  the  Union  embrace  Home 
Mission  work  in  addition  to  Foreign ;  second,  that  the  young  people's 
work  be  pushed;  third,  that  the  circulation  of  our  church  literature 
be  emphasized;  fourth,  that  our  societies  observe  the  Week  of 
Prayer,  stating  tersely  and  trenchantly,  "Today,  as  of  old,  prayer 
can  divide  every  Red  Sea  and  roll  back  every  Jordan." 

Following  out  the  second  recommendation,  the  office  of  Young 
People's  Agent  was  created  at  this  convention,  and  Mrs.  J.  C. 
Stewart  was  elected  to  fill  it.  Only  three  young  people's  societies 
were  reported  at  this  meeting  and  were:  The  Earnest  Workers  of 
Caswell  Church,  organized  April,  1898 ;  the  Missionary  Band  of 
Black  River  Church,  organized  September,  1898,  and  the  Little 
Workers  of  South  River  Church,  organized  March,  1899.  Under 
the  efficient  leadership  of  Mrs.  Stewart,  our  young  people's  work 
took  on  new  life,  as  will  be  noted  later  on. 

The  following  officers  were  elected :  President,  Mrs.  Jackson  John- 
son; vice-presidents,  Misses  Eliza  Murphy  and  J.  D.  Wood;  record- 
ing secretary  and  treasurer,  Miss  Katherine  Cromartie.  At  an 
executive  committee  meeting  in  August,  1902,  Miss  Annie  Paddi- 
son  was  elected  corresponding  secretary,  the  first  mention  we  have 
of  this  office  except  in  our  constitution.  The  names  of  Mrs.  E.  A. 
McRae,  Mrs.  Ellen  Fennell,  Mrs.  A.  D.  McClure  and  Mrs.  J.  B. 
Moore  appear  as  members  of  the  executive  committee. 

The  president,  in  her  annual  address  (1902),  asked  that  the  ladies 
present  discuss  the  advisability  of  having  a  meeting  each  Fall,  "for 
the  purpose  of  waiting  on  God  in  prayer."  At  least  three  members 
had  come  to  the  Spring  meeting  of  the  Executive  Committee  eagerly 
anxious  that  we  establish  a  Day  of  Prayer,  these  being  Mrs.  Johnson, 
Mrs.  Hall  and  Miss  Murphy.  The  idea  had  come  to  them  from 
reading  an  account  of  an  all-day  prayer  meeting  held  during  the 
first  week  of  the  year  in  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Nash- 
ville, ISTo  action  was  taken  at  the  annual  meeting  of  1902,  but 
at  an  executive  committee  meeting,  August  18,  1902,  it  was  decided 
that  a  meeting  be  held  in  the  Sunday  School  room  of  the  First 
Church,  Wilmington,  on  Saturday,  October  11th,  1902,  and  "that 
this  be  a  devotional  meeting  for  the  purpose  of  Prayer  and  Praise." 

Another  meeting  of  the  executive  committee  was  called  for  the 
next  morning  to  prepare  a  program  for  the  Day  of  Prayer  and 
Praise. 

The  following  notice  was  sent  to  the  societies : 


Growth  and  Expansion  37 

Wilmington,  N.   C,   September  16th,   1902. 

The  Executive  Committee  of  the  Woman's  Missionary  Union  of  Wilming- 
ton Presbytery  has  appointed  October  11th  for  a  day  of  prayer  for  missions, 
to  be  observed  by  the  whole  Union,  and  has  ordered  a  program  arranged 
for  a  devotional  meeting.  The  Foreign  Missionary  Society  of  the  First 
Church,  Wilmington,  has  invited  the  Union  to  meet  there  in  the  Lecture 
Room. 

The  program  tells  of  a  very  special  treat  in  store  for  us,  and  the 
Committee  earnestly  hopes  for  a  large  attendance.  The  ladies  will  be 
guests  of  the  First  Church;  and,  since  the  day  selected  is  Saturday,  as 
many  as  can  are  cordially  invited  to  remain  over  Sunday.  It  will  be 
a  help  if  those  who  hope  to  attend  will  send  their  names  to  Mrs.  B.  F. 
Hall,  Wilmington. 

May  God  richly  bless  this  Day  of  Prayer. 

Annie  Paddison, 
Corresponding  Secretary  of  the  Union. 

The  following  concise  account  of  this  first  Day  of  Prayer,  as 
reported  by  Miss  Eliza  Murphy,  secretary  pro  tern.,  appears  in  the 
written  minutes  of  1902  and  is  of  significant  interest : 

"The  first  annual  Day  of  Prayer  was  held  at  the  First  Church, 
Wilmington,  in  the  Lecture  Room,  on  October  11th,  1902.  It  was 
truly  a  feast  of  good  things.  A  warm  and  inspiring  address  of  wel- 
come from  Dr.  Wells,  pastor;  soul-stirring  addresses  by  Mrs.  H.  C. 
DuBose  and  our  own  missionary,  Mrs.  George  Worth ;  an  address 
on  enthusiasm  by  our  beloved  Mrs.  McRae;  much  prayer,  silent 
and  voiced.  We  came  away  feeling  that,  having  asked,  we  would 
receive." 

It  was  at  this  first  Day  of  Prayer  that  Mrs.  Worth  told  of  the 
poor  hospital  facilities  at  Kiangyin,  and  yet  what  wonderful  work 
was  being  done  there  by  Dr.  Worth.  This  great  need  was  laid 
upon  our  hearts,  and  the  seed  sown  bore  fruit  later. 

Ours  was  the  first  Presbyterial,  and  for  many  years  the  only 
one  in  our  Assembly  to  observe  a  Day  of  Prayer  as  a  regular 
and  annual  meeting.  God  has  set  His  seal  upon  the  day  in  many 
and  signal  ways,  and  since  its  inauguration  we  have  continued  to 
observe  it  with  much  spiritual  benefit.  Rev.  R.  L.  Wharton,  whom 
we  invited  to  speak  to  us  on  the  Day  of  Prayer,  1905,  said  that 
from  the  time  he  received  the  invitation  there  had  been  singing 
in  his  heart  and  in  his  ears,  "A  Day  of  Prayer,  A  Day  of  Prayer!" 
and  that  we  could  never  know  just  how  much  it  meant  to  him, 
and  to  other  missionaries  who  would  hear  of  such  a  day,  to  know 
that  the  women  of  this  Presbytery  had  set  aside  a  whole  day  and 


38  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

united  in  petitions  for  the  work  of  the  Master  and  His  servants 
in  the  Home  and  Foreign  fields.  He  said,  "This  is  holding  up 
the  hands  of  your  missionaries  in  the  best  possible  way." 

"More  things  are  wrought  by  prayer  than  this  world  dreams  of." 
I  am  moved  to  relate  in  this  connection  a  true  story  of  the  pre- 
vailing prayer  life  of  Mrs.  Elizabeth  McRae,  as  told  to  me  by 
one  of  her  close  friends.  They  were  discussing  the  needs  of  the 
Kingdom,  shortly  before  her  death,  and,  speaking  of  a  certain 
wealthy  friend,  in  a  voice  almost  of  awe  at  what  she  had  done,  she 
said,  "Do  you  know  I  have  dared  to  ask  the  Lord  that  he  give  to 
the  Church,  not  by  the  thousands,  as  he  now  does,  but  by  the  ten 
thousands!"  Shortly  afterwards,  at  the  Birmingham  Layman's 
convention  he  was  one  of  three  laymen  to  give  ten  thousand  to 
missions,  the  beginning  of  his  princely  giving,  which  has  since  run 
into  the  hundred  thousands !  "Abundantly  above  all  that  we  ask 
or  think." 

Mrs.  Johnson's  annual  report  of  1902  recorded  some  discourage- 
ments, too,  as  for  instance,  an  Executive  Committee  meeting  when 
only  the  president  was  present ;  and  again,  seeking  to  ascertain  the 
exact  number  of  societies  in  the  Presbytery,  she  wrote  to  every 
minister  within  our  bounds,  and  received  four  replies !  Did  she 
give  up  ?  She  wrote  again  asking  them  to  send  a  woman  delegate 
from  each  of  their  churches  to  the  Union  convention  at  South  River. 

The  annual  meeting  of  1903  convened  at  Chadbourn  Church, 
June  18th  and  19th.  There  was  a  full  attendance  of  both 
adults  and  young  people,  interesting  programs  were  carried  out, 
and  delightful  fellowship  prevailed.  In  the  Minutes  it  is  described 
as  "a  glorious  gathering,  full  of  new  inspiration  and  blessed  by 
the  presence  of  the  Holy  Spirit,"  The  missionary  address  was 
given  by  Dr.  McClure.  Eight  new  societies  had  been  added  during 
the  year;  the  Union  now  had  twenty-four  ladies'  and  twelve  chil- 
dren's societies,  a  total  of  thirty-six,  with  a  membership  of  550,  and 
contributions  (reported),  $848.00.  Of  these,  eighteen  ladies'  and 
eleven  children's  societies  sent  in  reports. 

Our  Union  was  the  first  to  embrace  young  people's  work,  and 
this  we  had  done  from  the  beginning,  but  this  was  the  first  time 
there  had  been  a  program  given  over  to  the  young  people.  On 
Wednesday  afternoon  the  following  program  was  rendered:  Devo- 
tional, Miss  E.  W.  Murphy;  report  of  children's  work,  Mrs.  J.  C. 
Stewart;  best  method  of  developing  children's  work,  Mrs.  A.  A. 
Willard;  papers,  China,  Mary  Colvin;  Brazil,  Marie  Russell;  Mex- 


Growth  and  Expansion  39 

ico,  Edna  McWilliams;  Japan,  Charlotte  Duffy;  Africa,  Ethel 
Hanna;  Korea,  Cora  Moore;  Cuba,  Ethel  Clark.  Solos,  Daisy 
Maultsby,  Mary  Hannis  Whitted;  readings,  Mary  Sloan,  Mary 
Corbett  and  Florence/  Pearsall. 

Though  our  Minutes  show  that  at  the  1902  convention  a  memorial 
was  read  of  Mrs.  Rebecca  Lamb,  yet  the  first  Memorial  Service 
recorded  was  conducted  by  Mrs.  Jackson  Johnson,  at  the  annual 
meeting  at  Chadbourn,  June  18th,  1903.  She  read  from  the  21st 
and  22nd  chapters  of  Revelation  and  gave  memorials  of  Rev.  C.  R. 
Morton  of  Brazil  and  Dr.  Rankin.  Memorials  were  read  of  the 
following  society  members  who  had  fallen  asleep  since  our  last 
meeting:  Mrs.  Hattie  Corbett  and  Mrs.  May  Murphy  Corbett  of 
Black  River;  Mrs.  Patience  Brown  of  Chadbourn;  Miss  Myrtle 
Boney  of  Wallace  and  little  Bradley  Parker  of  South  River.  Miss 
Murphy  mentioned  the  death  of  Charles  Lucas  of  Caswell,  and 
Jean  Pond,  small  daughter  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  George  Worth.  The 
Memorial  Service  became  a  feature  of  our  annual  meetings. 

Following  the  president's  recommendation  of  the  preceding  annual 
meeting,  the  Union  this  year  embraced  the  Home  Mission  societies, 
a  forward  step  in  broadening  the  work. 

At  the  close  of  the  convention,  both  a  Woman's  and  a  Young 
People's  Foreign  Missionary  Society  were  organized  in  Chadbourn 
Church.  There  had  been  an  active  Home  Mission  Society  in  this 
church  from  the  erection  of  the  church  building. 

The  Day  of  Prayer  in  1903  was  held  in  the  Burgaw  Church. 
The  following  account,  which  appeared  in  the  "Presbyterian  Stand- 
ard," has  been  preserved:  "On  October  3  (1903)  the  Woman's 
Missionary  Union  of  Wilmington  Presbytery  held  in  the  church  at 
Burgaw,  a  day  of  prayer  and  a  farewell  meeting  in  view  of  the 
return  of  Dr.  and  Mrs.  George  C.  Worth  to  China.  Devotional  exer- 
cises were  conducted  by  Rev.  T.  D.  Johnson,  pastor  of  the  church, 
and  Dr.  Worth  delivered  an  address  of  rare  excellence  and  help- 
fulness. 

"At  4  o'clock  the  special  farewell  service  was  conducted  by  Dr. 
A.  D.  McClure.  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Worth  are  peculiarly  our  mission- 
aries, going  out  from  our  Presbytery.  Their  desire  for  others  to 
go  out  from  this  Presbytery  was  emphasized,  and  prayer  was  made 
especially  for  more  laborers.  The  parting  was  tender,  and  all  went 
away  resolved  to  do  more  for  missions." 


40  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

Mrs.  Johnson  said  of  the  meeting,  "It  was  one  never  to  be  forgot- 
ten by  those  of  us  who  were  there.  We  sat  verily  in  heavenly  places 
those  all  too  brief  hours." 

At  this  Day  of  Prayer,  Miss  Mary  Henry  having  resigned  as 
corresponding  secretary,  the  Executive  Committee  elected  Miss  Annie 
Moore  to  that  office. 

Four  meetings  of  the  Executive  Committee  were  held  between 
the  annual  meetings  of  1903  and  1904. 

The  annual  convention  of  1904  was  a  notable  one.  The  ladies 
of  Faison  Church  were  our  hostesses.  There  was  a  two  days'  ses- 
sion, June  15th  and  16th,  with  thirteen  delegates  from  women's 
societies  and  eleven  from  young  people's  bands.  Our  foreign  mission 
addresses  were  by  Rev.  L.  L.  Little  and  Mrs.  J.  L.  Crowley.  Rev. 
T.  D.  Johnson  gave  an  address  at  the  first  evening  session.  The 
officers  elected  for  the  ensuing  two  years  were :  President,  Mrs. 
Jackson  Johnson ;  vice-presidents,  Misses  Eliza  Murphy  and  Mar- 
garet Pierce ;  corresponding  secretary,  Miss  Annie  Moore ;  recording 
secretary  and  treasurer,  Miss  Mary  DeVane;  agent  for  Young  Peo- 
ple's Work,  Mrs.  J.  C.  Stewart. 

It  was  at  this  meeting  that  the  Union  undertook  to  build  the 
Kiangyin  Hospital  for  Dr.  Worth,  and  Miss  Eliza  Murphy  was  ap- 
pointed agent  for  the  fund.  The  amount  to  be  raised  was  $4,000.00. 
Miss  Murphy  was  also  Chairman  of  the  Organizing  Committee, 
and  did  efficient  work  for  both  these  causes  on  her  visits  to  the 
societies. 

For  special  home  mission  work,  we  undertook  to  raise  a  scholar- 
ship for  Lees-McRae  Institute,  the  mountain  school  at  Banner  Elk. 
This  was  to  be  given  in  honor  of  Mrs.  E.  A.  McRae,  who  had 
labored  so  faithfully  and  long  for  home  and  foreign  missions,  both 
in  the  mountains  and  in  Fayetteville  and  Wilmington  Unions.  Our 
part  was  $500.00  and  the  Fayetteville  Union  was  to  raise  the  other 
$500.00. 

Twelve  new  societies  were  reported,  making  a  total  of  forty-one, 
with  a  membership  of  821,  and  contributing  $1,136.00.  Our  presi- 
dent said  that  these  figures  marked  the  minimum  of  our  development, 
placing  as  of  more  importance  our  increased  personal  knowledge 
of  the  work  and  devotion  to  it,  the  new  life  and  interest  manifested 
in  the  local  societies,  and  the  willingness  of  members  to  respond  to 
the  duties  assigned  them.  The  growth  of  our  young  people's  work 
was  most  gratifying. 


Growth  and  Expansion  41 

At  this  convention  we  find  onr  wide-awake  president  making  two 
important  recommendations,  viz :  1.  That  our  societies  and  bands 
have  mission  study  classes;  2.  That  one  session  of  our  annual 
meeting  be  given  to  Bible  study  along  the  line  of  a  Bible  Institute. 

The  Day  of  Prayer  was  held  this  year  (1904),  October  15th, 
at  the  Wallace  Church.  Mrs.  Johnson  said  of  it :  "It  was  the  most 
blessed  meeting  of  the  kind  we  had  ever  had."  Addresses  were 
made  by  Dr.  Wells,  Mr.  Crowley,  and  Mr.  Vass  of  the  Congo 
Mission,  and  Miss  Mary  Devane  gives  a  full  resume  of  the  addresses 
and  other  exercises  of  the  day  in  the  written  Minutes  of  the  secre- 
tary's book. 

The  annual  meeting  of  1905  was  held  in  the  Lecture  Room  of 
the  First  Church,  Wilmington,  June  14th  and  15th.  There  were 
eighteen  societies  represented,  and  about  sixty  delegates  in  attend- 
ance. The  chief  features  of  this  meeting  were  addresses  by  Dr. 
Phillips  on  Japan  and  on  Organization ;  by  Dr.  Mattie  Ingold 
of  Chunju,  Korea,  and  by  Dr.  J.  O.  Reavis  on  Foreign  Missions. 

Contributions  from  women's  and  young  people's  societies  aggre- 
gated $1,451.00.  The  president's  report  showed  that  the  work 
was  moving  along  satisfactorily,  and  that  mission  study  classes 
were  growing.     Nothing  new  had  been  launched  this  year. 

The  Day  of  Prayer  for  1905  was  held  at  Black  River  Church, 
September  29th,  and  was  well  attended.  Talks  and  addresses  were 
given  by  Rev.  R.  M.  Mann,  Rev.  R.  L.  Wharton,  of  our  Cuba 
Mission,  Rev.  L.  W.  Curtis  and  Mrs.  Price,  of  our  Japan  Mission. 

Mrs.  Hall  reported  the  completion  of  the  Lees-McRae  scholar- 
ship at  this  meeting,  the  last  $15.00  having  been  contributed  at 
the  executive  committee  meeting  in  August.  Mrs.  Jackson  Johnson 
had  the  honor  of  giving  the  first  dollar  on  this  fund.  Miss  Murphy 
did  the  first  field  work  for  it,  at  Mrs.  Hall's  request,  while  solicit- 
ing for  the  Hospital  Fund,  of  which  she  was  agent. 

The  year  1906  found  us  in  annual  convention,  June  13th  and 
14th,  at  the  Clariton  Presbyterian  Church,  with  sixteen  societies 
represented.  Upon  the  suggestion  of  Mrs.  Hall  it  was  decided  to 
establish  a  scholarship  for -James  Sprunt  Institute,  our  Presbyterial 
School  for  Girls  at  Kenansville.  Mrs.  Hall  was  appointed  to  take 
charge  of  this  work.  She  had  first  made  the  suggestion  at  the  exec- 
utive committee  meeting  in  August,  when  the  Lees-McRae  scholar- 
ship had  been  completed,  saying  the  committee  had  inspired  her  to 
suggest  this  new  work.  Since  that  meeting,  and  on  October  the  15th, 
1905,  there  had  passed  into  the  Beyond  a  much  loved  student  of 


42  The   Wilmingtok    Peesbyterial   Auxiliary 

the  Institute,  May  Johnson.  In  her  first  year  at  the  institution  she 
had  consecrated  her  life  to  mission  service,  and  following  her  death, 
faculty  and  students  were  planning  to  erect  a  memorial  to  her  in 
the  form  of  a  Loan  Fund  or  scholarship  at  the  Institute.  Miss 
]\Iurphy  learned  of  this  decision,  and  suggested  that  we  combine  on 
it,  which  wasi  agreed  upon,  the  school  giving  the  initial  contribution. 
It  was  christened  the  "May  Johnson  Scholarship." 

The  financial  work  of  the  Union  for  the  year  had  been  the 
raising  of  the  fund  for  the  Worth  Hospital,  and  the  completion  of 
the  Elizabeth  McRae  Scholarship. 

Four  executive  committee  meetings  had  been  held  during  the 
year,  at  one  of  which  a  special!  program  on  "The  Study  of  Wilming- 
ton Presbytery,  and  the  Woman's  Missionary  Union"  was  prepared 
and  sent  to  all  the  societies  to  be  used  at  their  May  meetings. 

The  name  of  Mrs.  C.  R.  Knight  appears  as  a  member  of  the 
Executive  Committee. 

Mr.  Rowland,  member  of  our  Executive  Committee  at  Nashville, 
addressed  an  evening  meeting  on  "Missions  in  the  Sunday  School," 
and  Rev.  R.  M.  Williams  gave  a  Home  Mission  address. 

Five  new  societies  had  been  organized  during  the  year,  and  the 
gifts  from  all  societies  and  bands  aggregated  $2,044.00. 

The  following  officers  were  elected  for  two  years: 

President,  Mrs.  Jackson  Johnson;  first  vice-president,  Mrs.  J. 
A.  Brown ;  second  vice-president,  Miss  Margaret  Pierce ;  correspond- 
ing secretary,  Miss  Annie  Moore;  recording  secretary,  Miss  Miriam 
McFadyen;  agent  of  young  people's  work,  Mrs.  J.  C.  Stewart;  as- 
sistant agent  of  young  people's  work,  Mrs.  W.  T.  Bannerman. 

The  Day  of  Prayer  for  1£06  was  held  at  Warsaw,  October  6th, 
An  address  by  Dr.  A.  L.  Phillips,  the  Bible  Hour,  conducted  by 
Dr.  McClure,  and  an  "Open  Parliament,"  conducted  by  Mrs.  J.  A. 
Brown,  were  the  special  features  of  the  meeting. 

At  an  executive  committee  meeting  March  21st,  1906,  we  note  the 
first  mention  in  our  Union  of  a  North  Carolina  Synodical  Union. 
The  subject  was  introduced  by  Mrs.  Hall,  and  left  open  to  dis- 
cussion at  the  annual  meeting  in  June.  There  is  no  record  that 
the  matter  was  taken  up  at  the  June  meeting,  the  time  probably 
not  being  ripe  for  this  step. 

The  convention  of  1907  was  held  in  Wallace  Presbyterian  Church, 
June  13th  and  14th,  having  nineteen  women's  societies  represented 
by  delegates  and  twenty-two  sending  reports,  while  nineteen  reports 
were  sent  in  by  young  people's  societies. 


Growth  and  Expansion  43 

Mrs.  Johnson  urged  the  necessity  of  a  Presbyterial  Visitor  to 
organize  new  societies  and  encourage  old  ones. 

Miss  Jessie  Hall,  our  third  missionary  to  China,  sailing  the 
following  September,  was  present  and  conducted  a  Prayer  and  Praise 
service.  The  subject  of  State  organization  was  discussed  at  this 
meeting,  the  suggestion  coming  from  the  Albemarle  Union.  It 
received  the  enthusiastic  endorsement  of  our  president,  Mrs.  John- 
son, who  said  in  her  report,  "In  my  judgment  it  is  a  step  forward 
that  will  strengthen  our  work  and  multiply  our  usefulness."  Fea- 
turing this  meeting  were  Picture  Talks  on  Japan  and  Korea  by 
Mr.  Cameron  Johnson,  a  home  mission  address  by  Dr.  McClure, 
and  a  farewell  message  to  the  Union  from  Mrs.  McRae,  sent  a  few 
days  before  her  death.  This  message,  so  characteristic  of  this 
militant  saint,  was  as  follows :  "Hearty  greetings  and  congratula- 
tions. Go  forward  in  the  work!  For  the  King's  business  requires 
haste.  "We  must  be  up  and  doing,  for  the  night  cometh  when  no 
man  can  work.  Whatever  else  we  leave  undone,  we  must  do  the 
Lord's  work." 

The  memory  of  this  great  hearted,  gifted  woman  lingers  with  us 
as  a  fragrant  ointment.  The  historian  of  Center  Church,  Fayette- 
ville  Presbytery,  said  of  her,  among  other  things : 

"Perhaps  her  chief  work  was  the  organizing  of  Foreign  Mission- 
ary Societies  in  the  different  churches  of  the  Presbytery,  and  later 
in  organizing  these  into  the  Missionary  Union  of  the  Presbytery. 
She  visited  over  sixty  churches  in  the  Fayetteville  Presbytery  at  her 
own  expense,  and  endured,  as  a  good  soldier  of  Jesus  Christ,  the 
hardships  and  discouragement  incident  to  such  work.  The  Mission- 
ary Union  of  this  Presbytery,  those  of  other  Presbyteries,  organized 
or  quickened  by  her  zeal,  the  hundreds,  yea,  thousands  of  immortal 
souls  that  have  been,  and  will  be  in  the  future,  won  through  agen- 
cies launched  by  this  woman,  constitute  her  monument  that  will 
endure  in  undiminished  grandeur  when  the  earth  and!  the  works  that 
are  therein  have  been  burned  up  and  the  elements  melted  with 
fervent  heat.  For  more  than  fifty  of  the  eighty-three  years  of  her  life 
she  was  a  member  of  Center  Church,  and  her  ashes  lie  in  the  ceme- 
tery near  us." 

The  Worth  Hospital  Fund  of  $4,000.00  was  reported  as  com- 
pleted by  Miss  Murphy,  agent.  This  fund  was  undertaken  by  the 
Union  in  1904,  and  Miss  Murphy  deserves  especial  commendation 
for  her  untiring  efforts  in  completing  it  in  so  short  a  time.  Though 
often  physically  unfit,  she  went  up  and  down  the  Presbytery,  instant 


44  The   Wilmington   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

in  season  and  out  of  season,  and  her  enthusiasm  was  contagious, 
her  arguments  convincing.  She  literally  prayed  the  money  for  this 
hospital  into  the  Lord's  treasury.  The  wisdom  of  erecting  this 
building  has  been  amply  proven  by  the  reports  from  Dr.  Worth 
since  occupancy.  It  may  now  be  stated  that  the  Worth  Hospital, 
(now  called  Kiangyin  Hospital)  is  the  heart  of  Kiangyin  Mission, 
and  this  Presbyterial  should  never  neglect  it. 

It  was  at  an  Executive  Committee  meeting  in  the  fall  of  1907 
that,  following  an  earnest  appeal  made  by  Dr.  Worth,  who  was 
present,  we  promised  to  undertake  the  addition  of  a  Woman's  Ward 
to  our  hospital,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  Union. 

The  Day  of  Prayer  for  1907  was  held  at  Emmanuel  Church, 
Wilmington.  Dr.  Eorsythe,  of  sainted  memory,  was  the  mission- 
ary  speaker. 

The  amount  contributed  by  women's  societies  in  1907  was  $1,900 ; 
by  young  people's  societies,   $290.00. 

The  history  of  the  Union  for  1908-1911  is  rather  uneventful, 
nothing  new  having  been  launched,  and  it  may  be  briefly  summarized 
as  follows:  1908,  annual  meeting  at  Clinton;  delegates  from  twenty- 
nine  adult  societies  and  ten  young  people's ;  addresses  by  Mr.  W.  H. 
Sprunt,  on  Christian  Giving,  and  by  Rev.  C.  H.  Caldwell  of  China 
Mission;  again  an  appeal  for  a  Presbyterial  Visitor;  State  organ- 
ization recommended  by  the  president.  Amount  contributed: 
women's  societies,  $1,981.00;  young  people's,  $385.00;  total,  $2,366. 

The  Day  of  Prayer  was  at  Burgaw,  with  addresses  by  Rev. 
J.  R.  Carpenter  of  Richmond,  Dr.  McClure  and  Mrs.  Crowley. 
Miss  Albaugh,  under  appointment  to  go  as  trained  nurse  to  our 
Kiangyin  Hospital,  was  present  and  talked  interestingly  of  her 
call  to  mission  work. 

In  1909  the  Union  met  at  Mt.  Olive,  June  17th  and  18th. 
Delegates  from  women's  societies,  18;  from  young  people's  socie- 
ties, 13.  Miss  L.  B.  Tate  of  Korea  gave  the  foreign  mission 
address,  and  Rev.  M.  McG.  Shields  the  home  mission  message.  There 
was  also  an  inspirational  address  by  Mr.  Sikes.  February  4th,  1909, 
the  following  members  were  added  to  the  Executive  Committee: 
Mesdames  C.  T.  Harper,  W.  H.  Sprunt,  W.  M.  Cummings,  J.  S. 
Crowley,  J.  M.  Plowden,  A.  O.  Osbourn,  H.  Gr.  Smallbones,  W.  H. 
Chadbourn,  D.  M.  Mcintosh;  contributions  from  adult  members, 
$2,198.00;  from  336  young  people,  $501.00. 

The  Day  of  Prayer  (1909)  was  held  at  St.  Andrew's  Church, 
Wilmington. 


Growth  and  Expansion  45 

June  16th  and  17tb,  1910,  the  Union  convened  at  Chadbourn 
Presbyterian  Church;  twenty  women's  and  eleven  young  people's 
societies  represented  by  delegates;  addresses  by  Dr.  Homer  Mc- 
Millan and  Dr.  S.  H.  Chester;  all  officers  re-elected  and  a  vice- 
president  for  each  county  added  to  the  Executive  Committee,  these 
being,  Mesdames  Ward,  G.  L.  Clark,  J.  A.  Brown,  and  Misses 
Mary  Sloan  and  Lina  Hemenway.  Dr.  Worth's  plea  for  an 
assistant  doctor  was  stressed  both  in  the  president's  address  and 
in  Miss  Murphy's  report;  women's  contributions,  $2,398.00;  young 
people's,  $330.00.    The  Day  of  Prayer  was  held  at  Rockfish  Church. 

In  1910  Miss  Isabel  Arnold,  then  missionary  visitor  for  the  As- 
sembly, visited  our  Presbytery,  meeting  with  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee of  the  Union  and  laying  before  them  the  plan  for  a  Prayer 
Band  in  every  society.  To  every  society  president  and  to  every 
member  of  the  Executive  Committee  was  sent  a  copy  of  Andrew 
Murray's  "Helps  to  Intercession,"  and  a  list  of  "Definite  Petitions 
for  Prayer  Bands."  One  of  these  petitions;  was  that  from  the  Union 
of  Wilmington  Presbytery  God  will  give  a  laborer  for  the  harvest 
from  each  church  and  an  average  of  one  from  each  society.  In 
response  to  this  appeal  three  Prayer  Bands  came  into  existence, 
which  met  week  by  week  and  laid  this  petition  before  the  Lord  of 
the  harvest.  Within  the  decade  following  to  the  three  foreign 
missionaries  from  our  Presbytery  then  on  the  field  were  added,  eleven 
gone  to  the  field  and  others  under  appointment.  The  complete  list 
to  date  follows: 

Missionaries  from  Wilmington  Presbytery 

Dr.  George  C.  Worth    (1895),  China. 

Mrs.  Emma  Chadbourn  Worth    (1895),  China. 

Mrs.  Lillian  Johnson  Curtis    (1895-1900),  Siam. 

Miss  Jessie  D.  Hall  (1907),  China. 

Rev.   Lekoy   T.   Newland    (1911),   Korea. 

Rev.  Neill  Graham  Stevens    (1912-1915),  Africa. 

Mr.   Stacy  C.  Farrior    (1912),  China. 

Miss  Leora  James   (1916),  Brazil. 

Mrs.  Rosa  Lee  Clark  Wayland    (1916),  China. 

Rev.  Albert  Sydney  Maxwell   (1921),  Brazil. 

Miss    Ida    McLean   Black    (1921),    Africa. 

Rev.  Norman  Player  Farrior   (1921),  Mexico. 

Mrs.  Hazel  Black   Farrior    (1921),   Mexico. 

Miss  Pattye  Farrior  Southerland  (1921),  Mexico. 

Rev.   Charles  W.   Worth    (1922),   China. 


46  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

Volunteers 

Rev.  William  C.  Cumming. 
Rev.  Edwin  McCluke. 
William  Worth. 
David  W.  Roberts. 

In  1911  the  Union  convened  at  South  River  Church,  June  15-16; 
delegates  from  twelve  ladies'  and  five  young  people's  societies ;  ad- 
dresses by  Dr.  and  Mrs.  "Worth;  the  Union  decided  to  hold  a  Week 
of  Prayer  in  the  Spring  and  Fall  for  home  and  foreign  missions ; 
the  need  for  money  to  complete  our  Woman's  Ward  in  our  Kiangyin 
Hospital  was  stressed;  contributions,  ladies,  $2,305.00,  young  peo- 
ple, $294.00.  The  Day  of  Prayer  was  held  at  Black  River  Church, 
at  which  Dr.  Worth  was  speaker. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Executive  Committee,  January  5th,  1912, 
a  letter  from  the  Synodical  Union  of  Missouri  was  read,  asking 
that  our  Union  endorse  an  overture  prepared  by  them  to  be  sent  to 
the  General  Assembly  of  the  Southern  Church  in  May,  asking 
that  body  to  appoint  a  woman  as  General  Secretary  of  Woman's 
Work  in  the  Southern  Church.  The  Executive  Committee  endorsed 
the  overture  unanimously.  On  March  4th,  1912,  the  Executive 
Committee  in  session  heard  the  report  from  the  Conference  in  Atlan- 
ta, which  informed  us  that  they  decided  unanimously  to  ask  the  Gen- 
eral Assembly  for  said  secretary,  and  that  her  expenses  be  assumed 
by  the  women's  missionary  societies  for  two  years.  Also  that  each 
society  be  asked  to  give  not  less  than  a  dollar  per  annum  for  this 
purpose.  The  report  of  the  Conference  was  unanimously  adopted 
by  our  committee.  Mrs.  Jackson  Johnson,  our  president,  was  in- 
vited, by  Mrs.  E.  C.  Murray  of  Orange  Union,  to  attend  a  confer- 
ence of  presidents  at  Greensboro,  for  the  purpose  of  considering  State 
organization.  Our  committee  went  on  record  as  preferring  a  Synod- 
ical Union  to  a  Synodical  Conference. 

The  1912  annual  meeting  at  Wilmington  First  Church  had  twenty- 
seven  delegates  from  women's  societies,  and  twenty  young  people's 
societies  were  represented.  Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall  was  appointed  Historian, 
the  first  mention  we  have  of  this  office.  She,  therefore,  became  the 
first  Historian  of  Wilmington  Presbyterial. 

There  were  ten  missionaries  present  at  this  meeting,  viz. :  Dr. 
and  Mrs.  Worth,  Rev.  and  Mrs.  Crowley,  Revs.  "W.  H.  Hudson,  Lacy 
Moffit,  L.  W.  Curtis  and  Mrs.  Curtis,  Misses  Albaugh  and  Jourol- 
man. 


Growth  and  Expansion  47 

Mrs.  Johnson  reported  that  the  General  Assembly  had  promised 
us  a  secretary  of  woman's  work,  and  that  the  question  of  a  Synodi- 
cal  Union  would  come  up  at  Montreat  in  August.  Mrs.  W.  M. 
Cumming  was  elected  as  delegate  to  this  Conference. 

At  an  Executive  Committee  meeting,  November  14,  1912,  Mrs. 
Johnson,  having  been  elected  President  of  the  North  Carolina  Synod- 
ical  at  Montreat  the  preceding  August,  tendered  her  resignation  as 
president  of  the  Union.  Upon  the  request  of  the  committee  she 
agreed  to  continue  as  president  until  the  June  meeting.  She  re- 
ported that  the  Committee  at  Montreat  had  changed  our  name  from 
"Woman's  Missionary  Union"  to  "Presbyterial  Auxiliary  of  Wil- 
mington Presbytery." 

June  18,  19,  and  20,  1913,  marked  the  celebration  of  the  Silver 
Anniversary  of  our  Union.  We  met  at  Whiteville  Presbyterian 
Church,  and  it  was  a  memorable  occasion.  This  Whiteville  Society 
was  a  charter  member  of  the  Union"  at  its  organization. 

The  Minutes  recording  this  meeting  came  out  in  a  handsome 
binding  of  dark  gray  with  silver  lettering,  and  the  significant  in- 
scription, "Silver  Anniversary  1888-1913.  All  the  way  the  Lord 
hath  led  us."  Seventeen  ladies'  societies  were  represented  by  twenty- 
two  delegates,  and  many  visitors.  The  young  people  had  twelve 
delegates  representing  ten  societies.  Addresses  were  given  by  Dr. 
and  Mrs.  Worth,  and  by  Dr.  Caldwell  of  the  Mid-China  Mission. 
A  new  constitution  was  adopted  at  this  meeting,  and  the  consti- 
tution of  the  North  Carolina  Synodical  was  read  and  ratified  by 
the  Presbyterial.  The  following  ex-officers  were  made  active  and 
honored  members  of  the  Executive  Committee:  Mesdames  Jackson 
Johnson,  A.  D.  McClure,  J.  C.  Stewart,  W.  M.  Cumming,  B.  F. 
Hall,  J.  S.  Crowley  and  Miss  Eliza  Murphy.  The  following  is 
the  constitution  adopted : 

Adopted  June,  1913. 

CONSTITUTION   AND   BY-LAWS 

OF    THE 

Woman's  Presbyterial  Auxiliary 

OF 

WILMINGTON  PRESBYTERY,  N.  C. 
ARTICLE  I. 

NAME 

This  organization  shall  be  called  the  Woman's  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  of 
the  Presbytery  of  Wilmington,   North   Carolina. 


48  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

ARTICLE  II. 

OBJECT 

The  object  of  this  Presbyterial  shall  be:  1 — To  promote  the  formation 
of  women's  and  young  people's  Auxiliaries  in  the  churches  of  the  Presby- 
tery. 2 — To  diffuse  missionary  intelligence  concerning  the  four  executive 
departments  and  other  branches  of  our  church  work.  3 — To  create  mission- 
ary interest  among  women  and  children  of  the  Presbytery. 

ARTICLE  III. 

MEMBERSHIP 

All  auxiliaries  which  are  composed  of  women  and  young  people  in  the 
churches  of  the  Presbytery  of  Wilmington  shall  be  eligible  to  member- 
ship in  this  Presbyterial  Auxiliary.  Any  such  Auxiliary  shall  become  a 
member  of  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  upon  signifying  its  desire  so  to  do. 

ARTICLE  IV. 

OFFICERS 

The  officers  of  this  organization  shall  be  President,  Vice-President,  Honor- 
ary President,  Secretary  and  Treasurer,  Secretary  of  Literature,  Secretary  of 
Orphanage  Work,  and  a  Secretary  for  each  of  the  following  causes:  For- 
eign Missions,  Assembly  Home  Missions,  Christian  Education  and  Minis- 
terial Relief,  Young  People's  Work  and  Sabath  School  Extension,  Synodical 
Presbyterial  and  Congregational  Home  Missions,  Secretary  of  James  Sprunt 
Institute,  Presbyterial  Visitor  and  Historian. 

ARTICLE  V. 

DUTIES    OF    OFFICERS. 
PRESIDENT 

The  President  shall  preside  at  all  meetings  of  the  organization  and  shall 
have  general  oversight  of  the  work.  She  shall  call  meetings  of  the  Execu- 
tive Committee  and  appoint  necessary  committees. 

VICE-PRESIDENT 

Section  Two.  The  Vice-President  shall  assume  the  duties  of  the  President 
when  she  is  unable  to  discharge  them. 

SECRETARY 

Section  Three.  The  Secretary  shall:  A — Keep  accurate  minutes  of  the 
annual  meetings.  B — Notify  new  officers  of  their  election  and  committees 
of  their  appointment.  C — Attend  to  all  general  correspondence  of  the 
organization  and  write  all  notices  for  the  newspapers.  D — Prepare  a 
concise  narration  of  the  work  done  by  the  organization  to  be  read  at 
the  meeting  of  Presbytery  by  the  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Woman's 
Work.  E — 'Act  as  Secretary  of  the  Executive  meetings.  F — Shall  send  to 
the  office  of  the  Synodical  Secretary  a  copy  of  the  yearly  report  and  a 
revised  list  of  officers  to  the  Superintendent  of  Woman's  Work.  (This  shall 
be  done  immediately  after  the  annual  meeting.)  G — Shall  prepare  and 
tabulate  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  reports  and  have  them  printed. 


Growth  and  Expansion  49 

TEEASUEEE. 

Section  Four.  The  Treasurer  shall:  A — Receive  and  disburse  the  Contin- 
gent Fund  of  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  by  the  direction  of  the  Executive 
Committee.   B — Present  her  report  at  the  annual  meeting. 

SECRETARY   OF   LITERATURE. 

Section  Five.  The  Secretary  of  Literature  shall:  A— Correspond  with 
the  Local  Auxiliary  Secretaries  of  Literature,  and  seek  in  every  way 
to  act  as  a  clearing  house  for  gathering  general  data  bearing  upon  the  work 
of  all  causes,  which  she  shall  classify,  preserve  and  circulate.  B — Have 
for  inspection  or  sale  at  meeting  of  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  a  supply  of 
magazines,  scrap  books,  charts,  maps,  clippings,  sample  programs  and  the 
best  and  newest  leaflets.  She  shall  urge  the  Local  Auxiliary  Secretaries 
of  this  department  to  endeavor  to  stimulate  a  greater  intelligence  and 
higher  efficiency  by  the  organization  of  Mission  Study  Classes  and  Prayer 
Circles  in  their  Local  Auxiliaries.  C — Endeavor  to  enlarge  the  circulation 
of  the  Missionary  Survey  and  Church  Calendar  of  Prayer.  In  addition  she 
shall  handle  all  of  our  church  literature  needed  in  Woman's  Work  and 
not  embraced  in  the  four  causes,  emphasizing  especially  the  grace  of  Chris- 
tian Stewardship  by  circulating  literature  on  this  subject.  D — She  shall 
make  a  report  of  her  work  at  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Presbyterial 
Auxiliary  and  send  a  copy  to  the  Synodical  Secretary  of  Literature. 

SECRETARY   OF   FOREIGN    MISSIONS 

Section  Six.  The  Secretary  01  Foreign  Missions  shall:  A — Attend  to 
all  correspondence  pertaining  to  the  Foreign  Mission  Work.  B — Correspond 
with  the  local  Auxiliary  Secretaries  and  Synodical  Secretary  of  this  cause 
and  endeavor  to  secure  a  wide  diffusion  of  missionary  letters,  clippings, 
leaflets,  programs,  magazines  and  books,  and  endeavor  to  stimulate  interest 
in  foreign  missions  by  the  organization  of  Mission  Study  Classes  and 
observance  of  the  Week  of  Prayer  through  the  local  Auxiliary  Secretaries 
of  this  department.  C — She  shall  receive  and  disburse  the  money  for  our 
special  Foreign  Mission  object.  D — She  shall  make  a  report  of  the  For- 
eign Mission  work  at  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary 
and  send  a  copy  to  the  Synodical  Secretary  for  this  cause. 

SECRETARY   OF   ASSEMBLY'S   HOME   MISSION. 

Section  Seven.  The  Secretary  of  the  Assembly's  Home  Mission  shall: 
A — Attend  to  all  correspondence  pertaining  to  Assembly's  Home  Mission 
work.  B — Correspond  with  the  Synodical  Secretary  of  this  cause  and  en- 
deavor, through  the  local  Auxiliary  Secretaries  of  this  department,  to 
secure  a  wide  diffusion  of  missionary  letters,  clippings,  books,  leaflets, 
magazines  and  programs  and  endeavor  to  stimulate  interest  in  Assembly's 
Home  Missions  by  the  organization  of  Mission  Study  Classes  and  the 
observance  of  the  Week  of  Prayer.  C — She  shall  make  a  report  of  her  work 
at  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  and  send  a  copy  to 
the  Synodical  Secretary  of  Assembly's  Home  Missions. 
4 


50  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

secretary  of  christian  education  and  ministerial  relief. 
Section  Eight.  The  Secretary  of  Christian  Education  and  Ministerial 
Relief  shall:  A — Seek  by  correspondence  with  the  Synodical  Secretary  and 
the  local  Auxiliary  Scretaries  of  this  cause  to  increase  the  number  of 
trained  capable  ministers  and  lady  teachers  and  missionaries  to  enter 
the  field,  both  at  home  and  abroad.  B — Urge  the  local  Auxiliary  Secretaries 
to  impress  on  the  women  of  her  congregation  the  importance  of  proper 
religious  influence  in  our  schools  and  colleges  where  our  future  workers 
are  being  trained,  and  may  assist  the  Superintendent  of  her  Sunday 
School  in  presenting  programs  on  her  cause  in  the  Sunday  School.  C — Urge 
the  Secretaries  of  the  local  Auxiliaries  to  arouse  the  women  of  their 
congregation  to  a  sense  of  their  responsibility  for  the  support  and  care 
of  our  wornout  and  disabled  workers.  D — Secure  literature  from  the 
Executive  Committee  of  Christian  Education  and  Ministerial  Relief  and 
circulate  same.  E — She  shall  make  a  report  of  her  work  at  the  annual 
meeting  of  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  and  send  a  copy  to  the  Synodical 
Secretary  of  Christian  Education  and  Ministerial  Relief. 

SECRETARY  OF    YOUNG  PEOPLE'S   WORK   AND   SUNDAY   SCHOOL  EXTENSION. 

Section  Nine.  The  Secretary  of  Young  People's  Work  and  Sunday  School 
Extension  shall  be  in  close  correspondence  with  the  Leader  of  Young 
People's  Auxiliaries  and  the  Secretaries  of  Young  People's  Work  and 
Sunday  School  Extension  in  the  local  Auxiliaries.  Her  aim  shall  be: 
A — To  promote  a  missionary  spirit  in  Sunday  Schools  and  Young  People's 
Auxiliaries.  B — To  impart  instructions  as  to  the  best  methods  of  work 
by  the  church  for  young  people  through  the  Sunday  Schools  and  Young 
People's  Auxiliaries.  To  inform  herself  through  correspondence  with  the 
Synodical  Secretary  and  local  Auxiliary  Secretaries  concerning  the  progress 
and  needs  of  young  people's  work. 

SECRETARY    OF    SYNODICAL    PRESBYTERIAL    AND    CONGREGATIONAL    HOME    MISSIONS. 

Section  Ten.  The  Secretary  of  Synodical  Presbyterial  and  Congregational 
Home  Missions  shall:  A — Be  in  close  correspendence  with  the  Synodical 
Secretary  and  local  Auxiliary  Secretaries  of  this  cause,  Synod's  Superin- 
tendent of  Home  Missions  and  the  Home  Mission  Committee  of  Wilming- 
ton Presbytery.  B — Inform  herself  regarding  the  Synodical  Presbyterial 
and  Congregation  Home  Mission  work  of  her  Synod  and  Presbytery, 
including  evangelistic  work  and  Mission  Schools,  gathering  and  circulating 
information  concerning  their  work  and  stimulating  interest  in  the  same. 
C — Stimulate  interest  in  all  forms  of  congregational  and  mission  work, 
which  embraces  such  duties  as  assisting  the  pastor  in  caring  for  the 
sick  and  poor,  looking  up  new  members,  co-operating  with  the  Deacons 
in  raising  funds  for  all  congregational  needs.  D — She  shall  make  a 
report  of  her  work  at  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary 
and  send  a  copy  to  the  Synodical  Secretary  of  this  cause. 

PRESBYTERIAL  SECRETARY  OF  ORPHANAGE  WORK. 

(Section  Eleven.  The  Presbyterial  Secretary  of  Orphanage  Work  should 
know  every  church,  Sunday  School  and  Auxiliary  in  her  Presbytery.  She 
ishould  urge  every  Sunday  School  to  give  its  collection  on  one  Sunday  to 


Growth  and  Expansion  51 

the  Barium  Springs  Orphanage;  every  Auxiliary  to  appoint  a  local  secretary; 
to  clothe  one  or  more  children;  to  give  some  definite  thing  at  a  specified 
time,  once  or  twice  each  year.  She  shall  endeavor  to  promote  the  circula- 
tion of  the  Orphanage  paper,  Our  Fatherless  Ones.  She  shall  make  a  report 
of  her  work  at  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  and 
send  a  copy  to  the  Synodical  Secretary  for  this  cause. 

THE    SECRETARY    OF    JAMES    SPRUNT    INSTITUTE. 

Section  Twelve.  The  Secretary  of  James  Sprunt  Institute  shall:  A — 
Collect  and  disburse  all  funds  received  from  Auxiliaries  for  May  Johnson 
Scholarship  and  James  Sprunt  Institute  under  the  direction  of  the  Exec- 
utive Committee.  B — Seek,  by  correspondence  with  local  Auxiliaries,  to 
arouse  interest  and  co-operation  in  the  upbuilding  of  the  James  Sprunt 
Institute  under  the  direction  of  the  President  of  the  Institute  and  the 
Executive  Committee  of  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary.  C — She  shall  keep  in 
close  touch  with  the  student  using  the  May  Johnson  Scholarship  Fund 
and  inform  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  of  student's  progress. 

PRESBYTERIAL  VISITOR. 

Section  Thirteen.  The  Presbyterial  Visitor  shall:  A — Visit  at  the  ex- 
pense of  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  such  Auxiliaries  within  this  Pres- 
bytery as  may  desire  assistance  and  advice  in  their  work,  organizing  or 
reorganizing  Auxiliaries  where  needed.  B — She  shall  gather  literature  and 
first-hand  information  concerning  the  various  ways  in  which  the  most 
successful  congregations  have  been  organized  for  work,  as  suggestions  to 
those  who  are  contemplating  organization  or  desiring  to  improve  upon 
the  organization  which  they  have.  C — 'She  shall  consider  the  peculiar  prob- 
lems connected  with  the  work  of  the  local  Auxiliaries,  and  under  the 
direction  of  the  Executive  Committee  shall  furnish  suggestions  as  to  the 
best  methods  of  meeting  them.  She  shall  also  seek  to  discover  how  the 
latent  energies  of  the  women  in  the  various  congregations  may  be  utilized 
to  the  best  advantage,  so  that  they  may  embrace  the  opportunities  for 
every  sort  of  service  afforded  by  the  needs  of  the  'Communities.  D — She 
shall  co-operate  with  all  of  the  Secretaries  of  causes  in  her  work  and 
make  an  annual  report  to  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary. 

ARTICLE  VI. 

ELECTION    OF    OFFICERS. 

The  officers  shall  be  elected  for  a  term  of  three  years,  three  being  elected 
each  year. 

ARTICLE  VII. 
VOTING. 

The  privilege  of  voting  on1;he  election  of  officers  and  all  constitutional 
questions  shall  be  restricted  to  the  official  delegates  and  officers  of  this 
organization. 

ARTICLE  VIII. 

AMENDMENTS. 

This  Constitution  may  be  annulled,  altered  or  amended  at  the  regular 
meetings  of  the  Presbyterial  by  the  vote  of  two-thirds  of  the  voting  mem- 


52  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

bers  present;  Provided,  notice  of  the  intention  to  propose  an  amendment, 
alteration  or  annulment  shall  be  given  to  the  Auxiliaries  belonging  to  the 
Presbyterial  at  least  one  month  before  the  convening  of  the  meeting  at 
which  such  proposition   shall  be  submitted. 

BY-LAWS 

ARTICLE  I. 
The  Presbyterial  Auxiliary   shall  be   composed  of  Presbyterial  Auxiliary 
Officers,    three    representatives,    including    the    President    from    each    local 
Auxiliary. 

ARTICLE  II. 

PROGRAM. 

Tbe  Executive  Committee  shall  arrange  the  program  for  the  annual 
meeting  and  the  Day  of  Prayer. 

ARTICLE  III. 

FINANCE. 

Section  1.  The  expense  of  this  organization  for  stationery,  printing, 
postage  and  other  incidentals,  including  railroad  fare  of  President  and 
Secretary  to  annual  meeting  and  of  those  invited  to  the  annual  meeting, 
shall  be  paid  from  the  Contingent  Fund. 

Section  2.  Each  Auxiliary  shall  be  requested  to  meet  its  share  in  the 
Contingent  Fund. 

ARTICLE  IV. 

The  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  shall  hold  its  annual  meeting  in  the  Spring, 
the  date  of  meeting  to  be  determined  by  the  Executive  Committee. 

ARTICLE  V. 

THE    EXECUTIVE    COMMITTEE. 

The  Officers  of  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  shall  constitute  and  be  an 
Executive  Committee.  They  shall  fill  vacancies  as  they  occur  on  this 
committee  until  the  regular  annual  meeting,  and  transact  all  necessary 
business. 

Having  adopted  the  new  constitution,  our  Presbyterial  added 
to  its  officers,  secretaries  of  Assembly's  Home  Missions,  Local  Home 
Missions,  and  Christian  Education  and  Ministerial  Relief.  That 
of  Young  People's  Work  we  had  for  eleven  years  with  Mrs.  J.  C. 
Stewart  as  secretary  though  we  called  her  "agent."  Our  Foreign 
Mission  Secretary  was  known  as  Agent  for  the  Kiangyin  Hospital 
Fund;  our  Home  Mission  Secretary  was  known  as  Agent  for  the 
Lees-McRae  Scholarship  and  later  for  the  May  Johnson  Loan  Fund, 
though  this  would  more  correctly  have  been  called  "Christian 
Education."     We  also  had   a  Secretary  of  Literature   for   years. 


Growth  and  Expansion"  53 

One  of  the  features  of  the  program  at  the  Silver  Anniversary  was 
the  presentation  of  the  work  of  four  Assembly's  Committees  in  a 
splendid  address  by  Mrs.  L.  J.  Curtis,  called  "A  Fully  Rounded 
Work."  At  the  request  of  Assembly's  Committees  she  gave  the 
address  to  our  eight  Unions,  and  it  was  afterwards  published  by 
them  in  leaflet  form  for  free  distribution. 

Miss  Eliza  Murphy,  after  ten  years  of  untiring  labor  and  prayer, 
having  finished  most  brilliantly  the  fund  for  our  hospital  in  China, 
$10,000.00  in  all,  gave  an  interesting  history  of  the  work  of  the 
Presbyterial  for  this  cause.  We  changed  the  name  of  this  office 
to  Secretary  of  Foreign  Missions,  and  Mrs.  W.  P.  M.  Currie,  who, 
as  Annie  Moore,  had  served  the  Presbyterial  so  acceptably  from 
1903  to  1908  as  corresponding  secretary,  was  elected  to  fill  this 
office.  Mrs.  J.  C.  Stewart,  after  having  served  most  efficiently  for 
eleven  years  as  secretary  of  young  people's  work,  resigned  and  Mrs. 
Edwin  Taylor  was  elected  to  succeed  her.  Concerning  Mrs.  Stew- 
art's work  for  the  young  people,  it  may  be  said  of  her  as  of  the 
Roman  king,  "she  found  it  brick  and  left  it  marble."  When  she 
became  secretary  of  this  work,  there  were  only  three  young  people's 
bands  in  the  Presbyterial.  This  number  had  grown  to  thirty-six. 
with  five  hundred  members,  whose  contributions  had  aggregated 
$4,000.00,  their  gifts  having  gone  to  the  Hospital,  the  scholarship 
funds,  Orphanage  and  other  causes  of  the  church.  From  the  young 
people's  bands  had  grown  up  efficient  officers  for  local  church  socie- 
ties and  for  our  Presbyterial,  four  missionaries  to  foreign  fields, 
and  two  volunteers,  whom  God  in  His  wisdom  had  called  up  higher. 
This  development  of  the  young  people's  work  was  largely  due  to 
Mrs.  Stewart's  personal  and  persistent  work  among  them.  Mrs. 
Jackson  Johnson,  who  had  for  thirteen  years  served  our  Presby- 
terial as  president  most  ably,  aggressively,  loyally  and  lovingly, 
having  been  elected  to  the  larger  office  of  Synodical  president,  re- 
signed, and  Mrs.  A.  J.  Howell  of  Wilmington  was  elected  to  fill  the 
vacancy,  with  Mrs.  L.  D.  Latta  of  Wilmington  as  recording  secre- 
tary and  treasurer. 

Though  comparisons  may  be  odious,  they  are  not  so  in  this 
history,  because  in  studying  the  different  periods  and  phases  of 
the  work  of  our  Presbyterial  in  its  forward  march  of  thirty-five 
years,  we  are  impressed  with  the  fact  that  each  president,  who  was 
selected  and  placed  in  charge,  after  waiting  on  God  for  Divine 
guidance,  brought  to  the  work  just  the  service  most  needed  during 
the  period  of  her  particular  administration. 


54  The   Wilmington   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

Mrs.  Johnson  was  a  progressive.  She  had  vision  and  was  always 
alert  and  ready  to  take  up  new  and  larger  things  in  the  Master's 
service.  She  brought  to  the  work  courage,  spirituality,  optimism, 
enthusiasm,  and  love  for  the  service  she  was  rendering.  She  met 
and  mastered  many  difficult  problems  in  the  development  of  the 
work;  of  the  Presbyterial.  She  was  always  ready  to  give  new  things 
an  honest  trial,  and  had  an  unerring  faculty  for  retaining  of  the 
old  that  which  was  good,  and  of  substituting  for  the  old  that  which 
was  better.  Her  keen  sense  of  humor  tided  her  over  many  an  awk- 
ward or  discouraging  situation.  For  instance,  at  one  annual  meet- 
ing the  convention  was  met  with  a  downpour  of  rain  that  threatened 
to  last  throughout  the  entire  session.  In  the  midst  of  the  general 
depression  her  saving  sense  of  humor  singled  out  and  enjoyed  the 
one  amusing  incident  of  the  occasion.  It  was  before  the  clay  when 
women  rose  to  their  feet  to  speak  with  the  present  assurance,  and 
most  often  without  notes,  but  rather  in  the  time  when  we  arose 
with  knees  a-tremble  and  clung  desperately  to  a  carefully  prepared 
manuscript,  fearful  even  of  looking  up  lest  we  lose  our  "place"  and 
be  undone.  The  lady  who  was  to  give  the  "Address  of  Welcome" 
(not  "Greetings"  in  those  days)  was  duly  introduced  and  proceeded 
to  read  her  carefully  prepared  speech.  While  the  few  delegates 
who  had  braved  the  weather  to  attend  were  leaning  forward  in 
order  to  hear  above  the  noise  of  the  storm,  she  calmly  read,  "While 
the  sun  sheds  benignly  upon  you  its  glad  rays  of  welcome,  and 
the  birds  in  our  historic  grove  chant  their  joyous  notes  of  praise 
and  greeting,  it  gives  me  much  pleasure  to  welcome  also  to  our 
church  and  community  such  a  goodly  number  of  delegates  and 
visitors."  Her  address  had  evidently  been  prepared  under  serene 
skies,  and  she  was  not  the  kind  to  be  "veered  about  by  every  wind 
that  blows." 

The  growth  of  the  Presbyterial  under  Mrs.  Johnson's  guidance 
may  be  glimpsed  from  the  fact  that  in  1909,  at  the  end  of  her  first 
year,  she  reported  fifteen  societies,  with  319  members,  contributing 
for  the  year,  $678.00,  while  in  1913,  when  she  retired  as  president, 
she  reported  seventy  societies,  1,258  members,  contributing  $9,993.00. 

She  has  been  retained  in  the  service  of  the  Presbyterial  as 
Honorary  President,  and  we  still  lean  heavily  upon  her  for  coun- 
sel and  guidance.  No  annual  meeting  or  Day  of  Prayer  seems  quite 
complete  without  her,  and  she  is  a  faithful  attendant  still  upon  our 
Executive  Committee  meetings,  driving  the  fifteen  miles  over  country 
roads  in  good  and  bad  weather  in  order  to  meet  with  us. 


Growth  and  Expansion  55 

The  year  1913-1914  found  us  at  the  beginning  of  our  second  stage 
on  the  road  to  our  Golden  Jubilee. 

Under  the  leadership  of  Mrs.  Andrew  Howell  of  Wilmington, 
the  following  excellent  things  took  place  that  year:  First,  Eight 
new  adult  societies  joined  our  Presbyterial,  viz. :  Rocky  Point, 
Bethany,  Winter  Park,  Currie  Council,  Pollocksville,  Home  Mis- 
sion Auxiliary  of  First  Church,  Wilmington,  and  Oak  Plains,  and 
three  young  people's  societies  were  organized,  Bethany,  New  Hope, 
and  Mt.  Olive;  second,  Mrs.  Johnson,  who  had  been  appointed 
Presbyterial  Visitor,  visited  most  of  the  smaller  societies,  explain- 
ing the  new  plan  of  work  under  Mrs.  Winsboro,  as  our  Secretary 
of  Woman's  Work  in  the  Southeren  Church,  also  our  Foreign  Mis- 
sion work  and  other  plans  of  the  Presbyterial. 

The  Day  of  Prayer  was  at  Rose  Hill,  October  13th.  Dr.  Craw- 
ford, out-going  missionary  to  assist  Dr.  Worth  at  Kiangyin  Hos- 
pital, was  present  and  made  a  fine  impression.  Dr.  J.  Mercer 
Blain  was  also  present  and  gave  a  talk. 

The  reports  of  the  various  secretaries  of  causes  at  the  annual 
meeting  held  at  Burgaw,  April  17-19,  1914,  showed  that  the  Pres- 
byterial was  taking  hold  of  the  new  plan  and  that  there  was  an 
increased  interest  in  all  the  benevolent  objects  of  the  church.  Every 
society  in  the  Presbyterial  reported  their  year's  activities,  a  most 
encouraging  record.  Distinguished  visitors  with  us  at  this  meeting 
included  Miss  Jessie  Hall,  missionary  from  China;  Miss  Margaret 
Rankin,  recording  secretary  of  Synodical,  who  gave  an  address  on 
Organization;  Dr.  J.  Mercer  Blain  of  China,  who  gave  the  Foreign 
Mission  Address,  and  Mrs.  W.  C.  Winsboro,  our  Superintendent  of 
Woman's  Work.  She  gave  a  most  helpful  address,  outlining  and 
explaining  Woman's  Work  under  the  new  organization.  She  em- 
phasized the  power  of  prayer,  of  systematic  Bible  study  and  of  the 
training  of  young  people.  Mrs.  Winsboro  also  emphasized  the 
fact  that  we,  as  a  Presbyterial,  were  favored  above  others  in  having- 
our  own  Foreign  Mission  object — the  Kiangyin  Hospital.  In  an- 
swer to  a  question  concerning  the  distribution  of  funds,  under  the; 
sometimes  perplexing  new  Order  of  things,  she  told  the  body  that 
it  would  be  better  to  give  one  dollar  to  each  of  the  other  causes,  there- 
by acknowledging  the  claim,  and  give  all  the  rest  to  our  Hospital, 
than  ever  at  any  time  to  fail  in  loyal  support  to  our  own  object 
already  established  before  the  "Auxiliary"  days. 

At  this  convention  emphasis  was  laid  upon  Christian  Educa- 
tion and  Ministerial  Relief,  and  Mr.  Baker  and  Mr.  Cumming  gave 


56  The   "Wilmington   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

helpful  addresses  on  these  causes.  The  question  of  the  amount  of 
our  pledge  to  foreign  missions  was  settled  as  $1,200.00,  the  cost 
of  Dr.  Crawford's  support.  Increase  in  members  over  the  previous 
year  was;  adults,  71;  young  people,  43;  increase  in  contributions, 
$325.00. 

With  much  regret  the  Presbyterial  accepted  the  resignation  of 
Mrs.  Howell  as  President,  which  was  made  necessary  by  the  press 
of  other  duties.  Mrs.  J.  A.  Brown  of  Chadbourn  was  unanimously 
chosen  to  take  her  place,  and  Mrs.  James  Thomas  of  Clinton  was 
elected  vice-president.  Announcement  was  made  that  Rev.  Andrew 
Howell  had  been  chosen  as  Chairman  of  Woman's  Work. 

The  year  1914-1915  saw  two  forward  steps  in  our  Presbyterial; 
one,  a  greater  interest  in  our  Orphanage  work,  largely  through  the  in- 
fluence of  visits  to  the  societies  of  Miss  Hudson,  field  agent  of 
Barium  Springs  Orphanage;  the  other,  the  inauguration  of  a  young 
people's  Bally  Day.  Since  the  elate  of  the  Presbyterial  annual 
meeting  had  been  changed  from  June  to  April,  there  had  been  a 
distressing  falling  off  of  attendance  from  the  young  people's  societies, 
with  a  consequent  decrease  in  interest  among  them.  This  decrease 
came  about  because  of  our  young  people  being  in  school  in  April. 

At  an  Executive  Committee  meeting,  February  4th,  1915,  this 
question  of  the  inability  of  the  young  people  to  attend  in  April  was 
discussed.  Mrs.  J.  A.  Brown,  president,  made  the  suggestion  that 
we  have  a  young  people's  Bally  Day  in  June,  at  a  central  point, 
with  a  suitable  program,  conferences  and  discussions,  and  that  the 
young  people  give  their  reports  at  this  meeting,  also  that  the  Secre- 
tary of  Young  People  have  the  day  in  charge.  The  suggestion  was 
enthusiastically  received  by  the  Executive  Committee,  and  it  was  so 
decided.  St.  Andrew's  Church,  Wilmington,  gave  cordial  invitation 
to  hold  this  day  with  them.  Thus  was  launched  our  first  young  peo- 
ple's Bally  Day,  our  Presbyterial  being  the  first  in  North  Caro- 
lina to  provide  such  a  day  for  our  young  people.  It  is  interesting  to 
note  that  the  Synodical  Committee  on  Recommendations  at  the  Eall 
meeting  following  our  Bally,  gave  as  their  second  recommendation, 
"That  the  Presbyterials  discuss  the  advisability  of  a  Young  People's 
Day  separate  from  the  Presbyterial  meeting."  The  recommenda- 
tion was  favorably  received  by  many  of  the  Presbyterials  and  out 
of  these  Rallies  has  grown  the  young  people's  ten-day  Conference, 
held  every  June,  and  first  begun  in  1918,  which  has  been  such  a 
power  for  good  in  the  lives  of  our  young  people. 


Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall, 
Organizer  and  First  President  of  the 

Presbyterial,    1888-1900. 


Growth  and  Expansion  57 

The  Day  of  Prayer  was  held  in  October,  at  Paison,  with  about 
sixty  ladies  in  attendance.  Rev.  Lacy  L.  Little  was  our  speaker 
on  that  occasion.  Since  our  annual  meeting  Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall,  founder 
and  first  president  of  our  Presbyterial,  had  fallen  on  sleep.  The 
following  memorial,  written  by  Mrs.  W.  M.  Cumming,  was  read 
before  the  body : 

Memorial  to  Mrs.  B.  P.  Hall : 

On  the  26th  of  April,  1914,  just  a  few  days  after  the  meeting  of  the 
last  Wilmington  Presbyterial,  Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall,  its  first  president,  entered 
into  the  rest  that  remaineth  for  the  people  of  God. 

The  Presbyterial,  not  then  called  by  this  name,  was  organized  in  Wil- 
mington First  Church,  April  30th,  1888,  with  Mrs.  Hall  as  its  first  Presi- 
dent. She  served  in  this  capacity  for  twelve  years.  She  was  indeed  the 
mother  of  the  organization,   carrying   it  tenderly,   prayerfully. 

By  means  of  it  she  awakened  interest  in  missions  throughout  the  Pres- 
bytery and  set  forward  the  work  of  her  Lord  and  Master.  Pioneer  work 
is  ever  hard,  and  no  one  knows  the  weariness  and  discouragements  that 
were  overcome  by  her  great  love  and  perseverance — her  abiding  faith 
in  Him. 

The  next  year,  1889,  its  second  meeting  was  held  again  in  her  own 
church  in  Wilmington.  She  had  planned  a  great  time  and  God  sent 
great  blessings.  Dr.  and  Mrs.  J.  L.  Stewart,  Sr.,  of  China,  were  present 
and  she  had  the  great  joy  of  having  from  her  own  church  two  volun- 
teers for  the  foreign  field,  Dr.  George  C.  Worth  and  Miss  Emma  Chad- 
bourn,  who  afterwards  became  Mrs.  Worth. 

The  third  year  the  Presbyterial  met  at  the  Old  Duplin  Roads  Church,  near 
Wallace,  and  the  warm  welcome  given  her  there  never  left  her  memory. 

The  fourth  meeting  was  at  St.  Andrew's  Church,  and  so  on  every  year, 
meeting  here  and  there.  There  are  notes  of  discouragement  now  and  then 
in  her  records  of  these  years,  because  of  lack  of  interest  in  Missions  among 
the  people,  but  never  a  note  of  "give  up." 

At  the  twentieth  anniversary  of  our  Presbyterial,  in  1908,  Mrs.  Hall 
spoke  of  the  great  blessing  God  had  given  her  in  allowing  her  to  have 
a  daughter  in  the  Master's  service  in  China.  She  expressed  the  hope  that 
when  the  Presbyterial  should  celebrate  its  fortieth  anniversary,  it  might 
have  many  sons  and  daughters  bearing  the  message  of  salvation  to  China, 
Japan,  Korea,  Africa,  Mexico,  South  America  and  the  Islands  of  the  Sea. 

In  her  vision  of  the  great  world  need,  she  did  not  forget  the  homeland, 
and  those  at  her  own  door.  Through  her  efforts  the  Presbyterial  gave 
sufficient  money  to  endow  a  scholarship  in  the  mountain  school,  Lees-McRae 
Institute  and  every  year  a  mountain  girl  is  receiving  Christian  care  and 
training.  When  that  was  completed,  she  began  raising  funds  for  a  scholar- 
ship in  James  Sprunt  Institute  at  Kenansville,  known  to  us  all  as  the 
"May  Johnson  Loan  Fund,"  and  several  young  women  have  reaped  the 
benefit  from  this,  although  the  scholarship  has  never  been  completed.    "She 


58  The   Wilmington   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

stretched  out  her  hand  to  the  poor,  yea,  she  reached  forth  her  hands  to 
the  needy."  The  history  of  the  Wilmington  Presbyterial  is  a  history  of 
her  service. 

When,  after  twelve  years,  she  turned  over  her  well  organized  work 
to  a  worthy  successor,  she  still  labored  on,  only  laying  down  her  work 
when  called  to  service  at  the  courts  above. 

She  was  ever  a  woman  of  prayer — here  lay  her  strength,  here  lay  her 
power. 

She  was  ever  wise  in  counsel,  undaunted  in  service,  brave,  courageous, 
gentle,  prudent,  delighting  herself  in  Him  and  His  work.  She  did  great 
things  for  her  Lord  without  pride,  she  did  the  lowly  things  with  all 
gladness. 

It  was  her  ideal  to  have  a  missionary  society  in  every  church  and  every 
woman  a  member  of  the  society — thus  setting  forward  the  kingdom  of  her 
Lord  in  our  own  and  foreign  lands. 

May  we  who  have  entered  into  her  labors  not  fall  short  of  the  standard 
set  for  us. 

I  call  upon  the  women  of  Wilmington  Presbyterial  to  keep  close  to  the 
ideals  of  its  first  president — to  follow  close  in  the  footsteps  of  its  pioneer 
leader,  even  as  she  follows  in  the  footsteps  of  Jesus  Christ,  doing  every- 
thing with  an  eye  single  to  His  honor  and  glory.  In  the  midst  of  vigor- 
ous service,  calm,  sweet  peace  was  hers,  so  may  it  be  ours, 

May  we  ever  be  able  to  say  with  her: 

The  Lord  is  my   Shepherd ;   I   shall  not  want, 

He  maketh  me  down  to  lie 
In  pleasant  fields  where  the  lilies  grow, 

And  the  river  runneth  by. 
The  Lord   is  my   Shepherd ;    He  f eedeth  me 

In  the   depths  of   a   desert  land, 
And  lest  I  should  in  the  darkness  slip 

He  holdeth  me  by  the  hand. 
The   Lord  is   my   Shepherd;    I   shall   not  want, 

My  mind  on  Him  is  stayed, 
And  though  through  the  valley  of  death  I  walk 

I  shall  not  be  afraid. 
The  Lord  is  my   Shepherd;    Oh,   Shepherd  sweet, 

Leave  me  not  here  to  stray, 
But  guide  me   safe  to  Thy  heavenly  fold, 

And  keep  me  there,  I  pray. 

Mrs.  Maggie  Sprimt  Hall  was  born  October  20,  1844,  at  Port 
of  Spain,  Trinidad  Island,  of  Scotch  parents,  who  were  living  there 
because  her  father  was  engaged  in  business  on  the  island.  They 
returned  to  Scotland  when  she  was  very  small.  They  moved  to 
America  when  she  was  eight  years  old,  and  her  father  founded  the 
well-known  firm  of  cotton  exporters,  Alexander  Sprunt  &  Sons, 
of  Wilmington,  !N".  C.  Her  father  represented  the  seventh  generation 
of  ruling  elders  in  the  Presbyterian  Church,  and  the  line  has  been  con- 
tinued to  the  ninth  generation.   The  family  is  prominent  and  honored 


Growth  and  Expansion  59 

on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic.  Mrs.  Hall  passed  to  her  reward  April 
26,  1914. 

Our  annual  meeting  for  1915  was  held  April  13-15,  at  Elizabeth- 
town.  There  were  twenty-four  official  delegates  present,  a  good  show- 
ing for  a  meeting  off  the  railroad.  Mrs.  Lacy  Little  of  Kiangyin, 
China,  gave  a  stirring  address,  full  of  interest  and  appeal.  Her 
gracious  personality  was  felt  throughout  the  day,  and  it  was  a 
great  privilege  to  have  her  with  us.  Dr.  Homer  McMillan  was  de- 
tained by  missing  connection.  His  place  on  the  program  was 
filled  acceptably  by  Miss  Sue  Hall,  who  gave  an  interesting  talk 
on  her  impressions  of  China,  received  on  a  recent  visit,  and  on 
woman's  larger  service  for  the  Master.  Helpful  addresses  were  given 
by  Rev.  Stanley  White  of  Chadbourn,  on  Sunday  School  Extension, 
and  by  Rev.  R.  A.  Lapsley  on  Home  Missions. 

The  Executive  Committee  had  held  three  meetings  during  the  year. 
At  one  of  these  Mrs.  D.  B.  Herring  was  elected  Secretary  of  Local 
Home  Missions,  to  fill  a  vacancy  that  had  occurred.  Miss  Sue  Hall 
was  invited  to  become  a  member  of  the  Executive  Committee. 

The  reports  showed  that  the  societies  were  organizing  according 
to  Auxiliary's  Plan,  and  were  undertaking  work,  educative  and 
financial,  for  an  increased  number  of  causes.  Foreign  Mission 
Study  classes  had  increased  from  two  to  twelve  and  the  $1,200.00 
for  Dr.  Crawford's  support  had  been  paid.  Gifts  to  all  causes  were 
$5,02-1.00,  the  president  stating  that  while  many  churches  had 
fallen  behind  in  their  gifts,  and  while  the  Foreign  Mission  Com- 
mittee at  Nashville  was  facing  a  discouraging  deficit  owing  to  the 
financial  distress  incident  to  the  war  in  Europe,  yet  our  Presby- 
terial  had  exceeded  the  amount  pledged  to  foreign  missions  and 
had  increased  gifts  to  all  causes. 

The  Presbyterial  year  1915-16  began  with  the  first  Rally  for 
Young  People  held  in  St.  Andrew's  Church  June  15th,  1915.  It 
was  well  attended  and  a  gratifying  success.  The  Executive  Com- 
mittee and  Secretary  of  Young  People  heartily  recommended  its 
continuance. 

This  year  also  marked  the  creation  of  the  office  of  Orphanage 
Secretary  at  the  first  Executive  Committee  meeting  in  May  and 
Mrs.  J.  T.  French  was  appointed  to  the  office. 

The  Day  of  Prayer  was  held  at  Wallace.  Addresses  were  given 
by  Rev.  W.  M.  Baker  and  Rev.  Robert  King. 

The  annual  meeting  for  1916  was  held  at  Grove  Church,  Kenans- 
ville,  April  26-28.    [Notable  features  of  the  convention  were  splendid 


60  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

addresses  by  Dr.  Homer  McMillan  on  Home  Missions  and  by  Dr. 
Thornton  Whaling  on  "The  Breadth  of  the  Kingdom."  Delightful 
Mission  Study  demonstrations  both  for  adults  and  young  people  were 
given  by  Miss  Mary  Kirk  of  Alabama.  Miss  McElwee,  Synodical 
secretary  of  Young  People's  work,  Miss  Arnold  of  Virginia  and  Miss 
Hudson  of  Barium  Springs  were  present  and  gave  valuable  assist- 
ance in  our  conferences. 

At  the  request  of  our  secretary  of  Orphanage  work  the  Presby- 
terial  adopted  Round  Knob  Cottage  as  our  special  for  that  cause 
the  coming  year.  Through  the  good  work  of  Mrs.  French  interest 
in  the  Orphanage  had  greatly  increased  during  the  year.  Gifts  in 
money  to  the  cause  had  increased  $308.00.  Total  gifts  to  all  causes 
were  $5,717.00,  an  increase  of  approximately  $700.00  over  the 
previous  year.  At  this  1916  meeting  Mrs.  W.  T.  Bannerman, 
having  been  elected  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the  Synodical,  re- 
signed as  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the  Presbyterial  in  which 
office  she  had  served  faithfully  and  efficiently  for  nine  years. 

April  25-27th,  1917,  found  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  in  session 
at  Clarkton.  There  were  twenty-nine  delegates  present  at  roll  call. 
An  interesting  program  included :  ISTormal  classes  in  Mission  Study, 
given  in  three  lessons ;  a  series  of  Model  Devotionals  for  society 
meetings;  addresses  by  Rev.  J.  S.  Crowley,  Rev.  A.  P.  Hassell  of 
Japan  and  Mrs.  W.  B.  Ramsay,  Synodical  President.  The  presi- 
dent's report  showed  a  steady  growth  in  the  societies  of  the  Presby- 
terial, expressing  itself  in  gifts  and  prayer  for  all  causes ; 
in  the  cheerful  and  prompt  meeting  of  pledges  to  Dr.  Craw- 
ford's support;  in  a  freer  and  more  intelligent  giving  to  Barium 
Springs  Orphanage;  in  a  growth  of  Mission  Study  classes,  and  a 
wider  observance  of  Home  and  Foreign  Mission  weeks.  Comparing 
the  gifts  of  the  Presbyterial  in  1914  with  those  of  1917,  they  were 
found  to  have  increased  $1,844.00,  and  this  in  spite  of  the  World 
War. 

The  President  had  appointed  a  Committee  on  Recommendations, 
hence  her  annual  message  contained  no  recommendations.  This 
appears  to  be  the  first  Committee  on  Recommendations  in  our  Pres- 
byterial and  was  composed  of  the  following:  Mrs.  A.  J.  Howell, 
Mrs.  Robert  King  and  Mrs.  James  Farrior.  Included  in  their 
recommendations  were  the  following  new  suggestions:  (1)  that  the 
officers  of  the  Presbyterial  constitute  the  Executive  Committee; 
(2)  that  the  Committees  on  Recommendations  and  JSToininations  be 
appointed  in  advance  of  the  Presbyterial;     (3)  that  the  Auxiliaries 


Growth  and  Expansion  61 

make  definite  plans  for  the  establishment  of  Family  Altars  and 
report  on  this  at  the  Day  of  Prayer;  (4)  that  a  secretary  be  ap- 
pointed in  the  interest  of  James  Sprimt  Institute  and  the  work 
of  the  May  Johnson  Loan  Fund  be  included  among  her  duties. 
The  report  of  this  committee  was  approved.  The  Day  of  Prayer 
for  this  year  was  held  at  Warsaw,  October,  1916.  Seven  new  Aux- 
iliaries— six  Young  People's  and  one  Ladies' — were  reported. 

This  meeting  closed  Mrs.  Brown's  term  of  three  years  as  presi- 
dent of  the  Presbyterial  and  she  asked  to  be  relieved  of  office.  The 
Executive  Committee  passed  Resolutions  of  Appreciation  for  her 
services  during  those  years  and  published  these  in  the  Presbyterial 
Minutes  of  1917.  Her  largest  work  as  Executive  Head  of  the 
Presbyterial  was  launching  the  new  Auxiliary  Plan.  Many  local 
Auxiliaries  had  to  be  convinced  of  the  advantages  of  the  new  plan, 
others  had  to  be  persuaded  to  embrace  the  larger  work  and  still 
others  disliked  giving  up  their  old  names  and  becoming  merely 
one  of  many  Auxiliaries,  so  the  work  was  not  all  smooth  sailing. 
However,  the  results  were  satisfactory  in  the  main,  practically  all 
of  the  active  societies  having  organized  according  to  the  new  plan. 

Mrs.  TV".  M.  Baker  of  Wilmington  was  elected  president,  Mrs. 
A.  W.  Southerland  vice-president,  and  Mrs.  Martin  S.  Willard, 
secretary  of  James  Sprunt  Institute. 

Mrs.  Baker  entered  upon  her  new  duties  with  earnestness  and 
enthusiasm.  An  Executive  Committee  meeting  was  called  early  in 
May  to  outline  plans  for  the  year's  work.  The  Secretary  of  Young 
People  having  resigned,  Mrs.  J.  C.  Stewart  was  elected  to  this 
office.  Two  other  meetings  of  the  committee  took  place  during  the 
year,  in  October  and  February. 

The  Day  of  Prayer  was  held  at  Winter  Park  Church,  October 
25th,  1917.  The  meeting  went  into  executive  session  and  the  fol- 
lowing business  was  transacted:  Mrs.  A.  O.  Trust  was  elected 
secretary  of  Christian  Education  and  Ministerial  Relief;  Com- 
mittee voted  to  undertake  the  support  of  a  second  missionary  at 
Kiangyin  station;  Mrs.  Baker  was  selected  to  visit  the  Auxiliaries 
and  secure  the  necessary  $1,200.00  for  the  support  of  the  same 
and  the  money  for  her  expenses  was  pledged.  Two  Young  People's 
Rallies  were  held  in  June,  one  at  Whiteville  and  one  at  First 
Church,  Wilmington. 

At  the  committee  meeting  in  February,  the  necessity  for  some 
changes  in  our  constitution,  owing  to  the  growth  of  the  work 
since  1913,  was  discussed  and  Mrs.  Jackson  Johnson,  Mrs.  W.  T. 


62  The   "Wilmington   Peesbyteeial   Auxiliaey 

Bannerman  and  Mrs.  L.  D.  Latta  were  appointed  to  draft  a  sug- 
gested constitution  to  be  presented  to  the  Presbyterial  at  the  spring 
meeting.  The  following  ad  interim  nominating  committee  was  ap- 
pointed:    Mrs.  A.  D.  McClure,  Mrs.  E.  W.  Hicks  and  Mrs.  J.  C. 

Stewart. 

The  annual  meeting  of  1918  was  held  at  Kose  Hill,  April  17-19th. 
There  were  forty-nine  delegates  in  attendance  and  a  number  of 
visitors,  among  the  latter  being  Mrs.  W.  B.  Ramsay,  Synoclical 
President,  Miss  McElwee,  Synodical  Secretary  of  Young  People, 
Miss  Mary  O.  Graham  of  Peace  Institute,  Raleigh,  and  Miss  Hud- 
son of  Barium  Springs.  Rev.  A.  J.  Crane,  Evangelist  of  Albe- 
marle Presbytery,  presented  the  great  need  of  Synodical  Home 
Missions  and  Mr.  Andrew  Allison,  Principal  of  James  Sprunt 
Academy  for  Boys  at  Kiangyin,  China,  brought  the  Foreign  Mis- 
sion message.  Other  interesting  features  of  the  program  were  an 
unique  "clinical  lecture"  on  the  local  Auxiliary  by  Mrs.  Ramsay 
and  an  illustrated  talk  on  the  work  of  the  four  Executive  Com- 
mittees of  the  church  by  Mrs.  Baker. 

The  President's  report  showed  much  time  and  labor  put  into  the 
year's  work,  she  having  visited  twenty  churches  in  interest  of  the 
support  of  the  second  missionary  at  Kiangyin,  and  having  written 
three  hundred  letters.  She  reported  thirty-nine  Auxiliaries,  966 
members,  and  gifts,  $6,301.00.  There  were  eight  new  Auxiliaries, 
increase  in  membership,  289 ;  increase  in  gifts,  $567.00.  Thirty- 
one  Mission  Study  classes  were  reported. 

At  this  meeting  our  Presbyterial  adopted  Synodical's  recom- 
mendation that  we  build  a  modern  dining  room  and  kitchen  at 
Barium  Springs  Orphanage  and  accepted  our  apportionment  of 
$2,500.00  to  be  raised  in  three  years.  This  was  apportioned  among 
the  local  Auxiliaries  by  a  committee.  The  Secretary  of  Foreign 
Missions  reported  all  of  Dr.  Crawford's  salary  sent  in  and  about 
half  of  Mrs.  Crawford's.  A  new  standard  of  efficiency  was  adopted. 
Among  the  recommendations  adopted  were  that  we  give  a  banner 
each  year  to  the  Auxiliary  scoring  the  best  record  and  that  we  re- 
sume the  printing  of  the  statistical  report  in  the  Minutes. 

Mrs.  L.  D.  Latta  resigned  as  secretary  and  treasurer  and  Mrs. 
J.  O.  Carr  was  elected  to  this  office.  The  office  of  Historian,  vacant 
since  Mrs.  Hall's  death,  was  restored  and  Mrs.  J.  A.  Brown  was 
elected  to  take  up  this(  work.  Other  officers  elected  were :  Honorary 
President,  Mrs.  Jackson  Johnson;  Secretary  of  Foreign  Missions, 
Mrs.  J.  R.  Phipps;  Presbyterial  Visitor,  Miss  Alice  Behrends. 


Growth  and  Expansion  63 

The  new  constitution  was  adopted  and  a  hundred  copies  ordered 
printed. 

At  an  Executive  Committee  meeting  held  at  Rose  Hill  imme- 
diately after  the  adjournment  of  the  Presbyterial  in  1918,  plans 
for  the  Young  People's  Rally  were  discussed  and  a  committee  was 
appointed  to  make  necessary  arrangements.  The  Committee  on 
Standard  of  Efficiency  Card  was  retained  and  authorized  to  pur- 
chase a  banner  to  be  presented  to  the  Auxiliary  making  the  highest 
percentage  at  our  next  annual  meeting.  This  banner,  the  gift  of 
Miss  Eliza  Murphy  to  the  Presbyterial  as  a  memorial  to  Mrs. 
Elizabeth  McRae,  was  awarded  to  the  Mt.  Olive  Church  for  the 
year  ending  June,  1919. 

The  Young  People's  Rally  was  held  in  the  Church  of  the  Cove- 
nant, Wilmington,  June  6th,  1918,  with  fifty-three  delegates  present. 
Mr.  Wade  C.  Smith  made  the  inspirational  address.  Sixteen  dollars 
and  seventy  cents  was  received  for  the  Synoclical  scholarship,  the 
new  object  undertaken  by  the  Young  People.  Twenty-six  Young 
People's  Auxiliaries  reported  451  members  with  gifts  amounting 
to  $715.00. 

The  Day  of  Prayer  was  held  at  Mt.  Olive  Church  in  JSTovember. 
Three  meetings  of  the  Executive  Committee  were  held  during  the 
year. 

The  thirty-first  annual  meeting  of  the  Presbyterial  convened  in 
St.  Andrew's  Church,  Wilmington,  April  16-18,  1919.  The  theme 
of  the  meeting  was  "Stewardship,"  carried  out  in  the  several  de- 
votionals  during  the  convention.  There  were  seventy  delegates  in 
attendance  and  twenty  visitors.  The  outstanding  address  of  the 
occasion  was  that  of  Mrs.  M.  L.  Swineheart  of  our  Korean  Mission. 
Dressed  in  the  native  costume,  she  pictured  graphically  and  im- 
pressively the  needs  of  the  Korean  people  and  her  experiences  as 
a  laborer  among  them.  Other  speakers  were  Mr.  Wade  C.  Smith, 
Rev.  H.  W.  Koelling,  Rev.  J.  O.  Mann,  Rev.  W.  F.  Hollingsworth, 
Rev.  D.  T.  Caldwell,  Dr.  J.  M.  Wells  and  Dr.  A.  D.  McClure. 

Among  the  good  things  reported  were :  First,  the  completion  of 
the  May  Johnson  Scholarship  of  $1,500.00  by  Mrs.  M.  S.  Willard, 
elected  secretary  of  this  cause  in  1917.  This  fund  was  begun  in 
1906,  and  a  little  less  than  half  the  amount  had  been  collected  by 
preceding  secretaries.  Mrs.  Willard  was  given  a  rising  vote  of 
thanks  for  her  zealous  and  successful  work;  Second,  this  meeting 
inaugurated  the  District  Auxiliary  Day  of  Prayer.  At  the  Execu- 
tive Committee  meeting  in  February,  1919,  this  new  plan  for  the 


64  The   Wilmington    Pbesbytebial   Auxiliary 

Day  of  Prayer  was  suggested  by  Mrs.  Baker,  and  a  comrnittee  with 
Mrs.  Jackson  Johnson  as  chairman  was  appointed  to  work  out  the 
details.  The  Recommendations  Committee  endorsed  it  as  their 
first  number,  and  the  Presbyterial  accepted  the  recommendation. 
The  plan  submitted  by  Mrs.  Johnson's  committee  was  the  division 
of  the  Presbyterial  into  eight  districts  with  a  chairman  for  each 
district,  the  meetings  to  be  held  consecutively  so  that  the  speakers 
for  the  week  could  go  from  one  to  the  other  of  the  meetings  and 
the  general  plan  of  program  used  at  the  former  Days  of  Prayer 
was  to  be  followed. 

The  recommendation  of  the  Secretary  of  Foreign  Missions  that 
we  adopt  a  Foreign  Mission  Budget  of  $3,600.00,  $1,800.00  to  go 
to  Kiangyin  Hospital  and  $1,800.00  to  be  equally  divided  among 
the  other  Foreign  Mission  fields  was  adopted  as  a  goal,  but  we  have 
not  held  to  this  plan. 

April  14th-15th,  1920,  found  us  in  session  at  Warsaw  with 
seventy-three  delegates  and  thirty  visitors  present.  The  theme  for  the 
meeting  was  "Power  Through  Prayer."  At  the  first  session  Miss 
Jane  Hall  presented  a  gavel  to  the  Presbyterial,  bearing  the  fol- 
lowing inscription :  "Presented  April,  1920,  to  the  Wilmington 
Presbyterial  Auxiliary  by  the  Woman's  Auxiliary  of  the  First 
Presbyterian  Church,  Wilmington,  1ST.  C.  Made  of  wood  from  the 
old  lecture  room  where  the  Presbyterial  was  organized  May,  1888. 
In  memory  of  Margaret  T.  Hall,  President,  1888-1900." 

Mrs.  E.  C.  Carson,  appointed  in  October  to  fill  an  unexpired 
term  as  Orphanage  Secretary,  reported  all  but  $360.00  of  the 
$2,500.00  pledged  by  our  Presbyterial,  as  in  hand.  This  deficit 
was  immediately  pledged  from  the  floor.  Mrs.  Carson  informed 
the  convention  that  owing  to  the  increased  cost  of  construction,  our 
building  at  Barium  would  cost  $75,000.00  instead  of  $25,000.00  as 
at  first  proposed.  The  delegates  accepted  the  new  figures,  $7,500.00 
for  our  Presbyterial  apportionment. 

Six  new  Auxiliaries  reported,  two  of  which  were  Juniors.  This 
brought  the  total  to  forty-four.  Lula  Hargrove  was  selected  as 
delegate  to  Tuscaloosa  Conference  for  Colored  Women,  being  held 
for  the  first  time.  This  conference  was  inaugurated  by  the  Woman's 
Auxiliary  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  South  and  represents  an 
effort  to  train  leaders  among  the  colored  women  in  our  midst.  This 
year  three  of  these  conferences  were  held  in  the  South,  with  an 
attendance  of  several  hundred  testifying  to  the  need  and  the  desire 


Growth  and  Expansion  65 

among   our    colored   women   for   better    preparation    for    Christian 
service. 

Prominent  features  of  the  program  at  this  annual  meeting  were: 
A  series  of  Bible  studies  on  Mark,  by  Miss  Angevine  of  Dr. 
White's  Bible  School ;  Foreign  Mission  address  by  Rev.  W.  M. 
Buchanan  of  Japan.  Miss  McElwee  was  present  and  helped  in  the 
Young  People's  conference.  The  Girls'  Auxiliary  of  Mt.  Olive 
received  the  prize  for  the  best  Scrap  Book.  The  Presbyterial  ban- 
ner for  best  work  went  to  the  Auxiliary  of  the  First  Church,  Wil- 
mington. The  Young  People's  banner  for  Efficiency  went  to 
Pearsall  Memorial  Junior  Auxiliary.  The  reports  of  the  Secre- 
taries of  Causes  were  most  interesting,  showing  that  each  one  had 
been  at  work  and  was  informed  as  to  what  had  been  accomplished 
for  her  cause  during  the  year  and  that  there  was  increased  interest 
in  all  the  work.  At  an  Executive  Committee  meeting  March  12th, 
1920,  the  office  of  Secretary  of  Prayer  Bands  and  Bible  Study 
was  created.  At  the  same  meeting  Mrs.  J.  A.  Brown  was  asked 
to  write  a  full  history  of  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary. 

The  Young  People's  Rally  had  been  held  at  Winter  Park  in 
June  with  fifty-three  young  people  in  attendance.  Rev.  W.  Hill  of 
Fayetteville  gave  the  inspirational  address.  Thirty-three  young 
people  from  our  Presbyterial  had  attended  the  Young  People's 
Conference  at  Queen's  College,  Charlotte. 

Six  districts  had  observed  the  Day  of  Prayer  and  the  reports 
showed  that  the  new  plan  was  highly  successful.  Three  hundred 
women  had  attended  and  the  helpful  programs  had  reached  many 
more  than  were  formerly  reached  by  the  one  place  meeting.  The 
collections  were  $38.00. 

This  closed  Mrs.  Baker's  three-year  term  as  President.  Though 
on  account  of  ill  health  she  had  not  been  able  to  give  as  much  time 
to  the  Presbyterial  her  last  year,  she  had  given  the  work  such 
impetus  during  her  first  two  years  that  there  was  no  break  in 
progress  and  activities.  Mrs.  J.  O.  Carr,  our  efficient  Secretary, 
and  the  other  officers  had  wrought  loyally  and  faithfully  in  carry- 
ing out  the  year's  program  and  the  results  were  most  satisfactory. 
The  following  facts  gleaned  from  Mrs.  Baker's  Report  for  1920, 
will  speak  eloquently  of  the  growth  during  her  administration : 
Thirty-one  Societies  had  grown  to  forty-four;  697  members  had 
increased  to  1,213;  gifts  had  increased  from  $5,726.00  to  $16,- 
481.00 ;  Mission  Study  classes  had  grown  from  seventeen  to  thirty- 
5 


66  The  "Wilmington   Presbyterial  Auxiliary 

four.  The  movement  for  Bible  Classes  and  Prayer  Bands  was 
well  under  way  and  an  excellent  Standard  of  Efficiency  had  been 
adopted.  At  the  1920  annual  meeting  it  was  decided  to  group  our 
Young  People  into  districts  and  hold  four  district  meetings  instead 
of  one  as  formerly  done.  The  work  for  Grove  Institute  (formerly 
James  Sprunt  Institute)  was  continued  and  an  annual  appropria- 
tion of  $500.00  was  recommended  for  this  school. 

Mrs.  Baker  had  made  a  most  efficient  and  progressive  President. 
She  was  a  splendid  executive  as  well,  inspiring  her  co-workers  to  a 
like  zeal  and  interest.  She  was  a  good  organizer,  having  the  happy 
faculty  of  selecting  the  right  woman  for  the  right  place  and  when 
she  retired  from  office  she  left  all  departments  in  excellent  working 
order.  As  the  wife  of  the  pastor  of  Mt.  Olive  Presbyterian  Church 
she  still  labors  among  us,  as  witness  that  the  banner  for  highest 
efficiency  in  1921  went  to  the  Mt.  Olive  Auxiliary. 

Miss  Jane  Hall,  daughter  of  our  first  President,  Mrs.  B.  P.  Hall, 
was  elected  President.  This  was  a  happy  choice,  for  both  by  in- 
heritance and  training  she  is  "thoroughly  furnished  unto  all  good 
works."  Other  officers  elected  were:  Vice-President,  Mrs.  Annie 
Southerland;  Secretary  of  Grove  Institute,  Miss  Winifred  Faison; 
Secretary  of  Synodical,  Presbyterial  and  Congregational  Home 
Missions,  Mrs.  H.  A.  Grady;  Secretary  of  Young  People,  Miss 
Alice  Behrends ;  Secretary  of  Orphanage  Work,  Mrs.  R.  C.  Carson ; 
Secretary  of  Bible  Study  and  Prayer  Bands,  Mrs.  W.  M.  Cum- 
ming;  Committee  for  Grove  Institute,  Mrs.  M.  H.  Wooten,  Mrs. 
W.  G.  Whitehead  and  Miss  Winnie  Faison.  The  Nominating 
Committee  provided  at  this  meeting  for  the  proper  rotation  of  office 
in  order  to  conform  to  Art.  VI  of  the  Constitution  adopted  in  1910. 

The  year  ending  1921  was  a  full  one  both  for  our  President  and 
other  officers.  Two  successful  Rallies  for  Young  People  were  held 
in  the  summer  at  which  three-fourths  of  all  the  societies  were  repre- 
sented. Thirty-five  of  our  young  people  attended  the  Synodical 
summer  conference  at  Flora  McDonald  College.  The  Young  People 
reported  thirteen  Mission  Study  classes,  twenty-one  Bible  Study 
classes  and  Prayer  Bands,  twenty-nine  societies,  584  members,  con- 
tributing $1,157.00. 

In  October  came  the  Synodical  Auxiliary  meeting  attended  by 
our  President  and  several  officers.  Also  an  Executive  Committee 
meeting  held  in  St.  Andrew's  Church,  Wilmington  with  sixteen 
members  in  attendance.  The  progress  of  the  year's  work  was  re- 
ported ?r_d  plans  made  for  the  Day  of  Prayer.     These  were  held 


Growth  and  Expansion  67 

in  six  districts  and  were  well  attended.  Mrs.  E.  W.  Orr  of  States- 
ville,  N.  C,  and  Mrs.  Jackson  Johnson  conducted  delightful  Bible 
Hours;  Dr.  A.  A.  McFadyen  of  China  Mission  gave  the  Foreign 
Mission  talk.  All  districts  reported  much  help  spiritually  from  the 
day. 

The  annual  meeting  was  held  at  Wallace,  April  19th  and  20th, 
1921.  The  theme  of  the  meeting  was  "Spiritual  Life,"  and  the 
motto  "to  deepen  the  spiritual  life  of  our  members."  There  were 
one  hundred  and  twenty-seven  delegates,  officers  and  out-of-town 
visitors  in  attendance.  The  Home  Mission  address  was  by  Mr.  J. 
J.  Murray,  the  Foreign  Mission  address  by  Miss  Ella  Graham  of 
Korea.  Wednesday  morning  was  given  to  two  conferences,  one 
for  the  leaders  of  the  Women's  Auxiliaries  and  one  for  the  leaders 
of  the  Young  People's  Auxiliaries,  held  at  the  same  time  but  at 
different  places.  These  proved  helpful  and  conserved  time  at  the 
convention.  The  Secretaries  reported  for  the  year  forty-five  mis- 
sion study  classes  with  664  enrolled  and  seventeen  Auxiliaries  ob- 
serving Home  Mission  Week  in  November.  Eighteen  had  put 
their  churches  on  the  Survey  Honor  Roll.  At  the  request  of  Mrs. 
Ramsay,  Synodical  President,  Mrs.  J.  O.  Carr  made  a  careful 
survey  of  the  church  membership  in  September,  1920.  The  re- 
sult showed  sixty-four  churches  with  a  woman  membership  of  two 
thousand  one  hundred  and  sixteen.  Thirty-six  of  these  churches 
are  represented  by  a  membership  of  one  thousand  two  hundred  and 
twenty  in  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary,  leaving  eight  hundred  and 
ninety-six  women  not  enrolled.  These  are  interesting  figures. 
Four  hundred  and  fifty-eight  dollars  was  given  to  Grove  Institute ; 
$5,418.00  had  been  collected  toward  the  $7,500.00  goal  for  the 
Orphanage  Building;  the  Scrap  Book  had  been  prepared  by  the 
Historian  containing  much  interesting  data;  we  were  the  only 
Presbyterial  in  the  Synodical  to  send  a  delegate,  bearing  her  ex- 
penses, to  the  Tuscaloosa  Conference  for  Colored  Women ;  we  had 
six  candidates  for  the  ministry  and  two  young  women  in  training 
for  mission  service ;  our  contributions  were :  from  Young  People, 
$1,188.00;  from  Women's  Auxiliaries,  $22,125.00. 

The  Young  People's  banner  for  highest  efficiency  was  awarded 
to  the  Junior  Auxiliary  of  the  Church  of  the  Covenant.  Miss 
Murphy  presented  a  most  interesting  and  arresting  report  of  our 
Kiangyin  Hospital. 

The  following  changes  in  our  constitution  were  adopted: 

That  Section  13  of  Article  IV  be  stricken  out  and  that  the  fol- 
lowing be  amended  to  read: 


6S  The   Wilmington    Pkesbttekial   Auxiliary 

ARTICLE  IV. 

Officers 
The  officers  of  this  organization  shall  be  President,  Vice-Presi- 
dent, Honorary  President,  Secretary  and  Treasurer,  Secretary  of 
Literature,  Secretary  of  Orphaange  Work  and  a  Secretary  for 
each  of  the  following  causes :  Foreign  Missions,  Assembly  Home 
Missions,  Christian  Education  and  Ministerial  Relief,  Young 
People's  Work  and  Sabbath  School  Extension,  Synodical,  Presby- 
terial  and  Congregational  Home  Missions,  Secretary  of  Grove  In- 
stitute, Historian,  Secretary  of  Prayer  Bands  and  Bible  Study, 
District  Chairmen  and  the  honorary  members  elected  at  the  Pres- 
bvterial  meetins;  in  1913. 

AETICLE  IV— Section  12. 
The  Secretary  of  Grove  Institute  shall  seek  by  correspondence 
with  local  Auxiliaries  to  arouse  interest  and  co-operation  in  the  up- 
building of  Grove  Institute  under  the  direction  of  the  President 
of  the  Institution  and  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  Presbyterial 
Auxiliary.  She  shall  keep  in  close  touch  with  the  student  using  the 
May  Johnson  Scholarship  Fund  and  inform  the  Presbyterial  Aux- 
iliary of  students'  progress. 

ARTICLE  IV— Section  13. 
The  Secretary  of  Bible  Study  and  Prayer  Bands  shall  endeavor 
to  enlist  every  woman  of  the  church  in  Bible  Study  and  to  have 
every  woman  in  a  weekly  Prayer  Band. 

ARTICLE  V. 

The  Executive  Committee. 

The  officers  of  the  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  shall  constitute  and  be 
an  Executive  Committee.  They  shall  fill  vacancies  as  they  occur 
on  this  committee  until  the  regular  annual  meeting,  transact  all 
necessary  business  and  appoint  all  nominating  committees. 

ARTICLE  VI. 

Election  of  Officers. 

The  officers  shall  be  elected  for  a  term  of  three  years,  four  or 
more  beins;  elected  each  Year. 

Following  out  the  recommendation  of  the  President  and  Execu- 
tive Committee  the  election  of  officers  was  by  ballot  and  resulted 
as  follows:  Recording  Secretary  and  Treasurer,  Mrs.  W.  M. 
Boice;    Secretarv  of   Christian  Education   and  Ministerial  Relief, 


Growth  and  Expansion  69 

Miss  Sallie  Hill;  Secretary  of  Foreign  Missions,  Mrs.  J.  O.  Carr; 
Historian,  Mrs.  J.  A.  Brown;  Secretary  of  Young  People's  Work, 
Mrs.  J.  M.  Harvey;  Secretary  of  Orphanage  Work,  Mrs.  J.  T, 
French.  A  committee  on  Young  People  was  also  appointed  and  the 
young  people  were  grouped  into  five  districts  for  their  Rally  Days. 

The  annual  meeting  of  April,  1922,  closed  thirty-four  years  of 
work  for  the  organized  woman's  societies  of  Wilmington  Presby- 
terial  Auxiliary.  The  convention  was  held  at  Clinton  and  was 
blessed  by  having  with  us  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Worth,  our  missionaries 
at  Kiangyin,  China,  after  an  absence  of  nine  years.  They  were 
an  inspiration  throughout  and  Mrs.  Worth's  Bible  Hours  were 
deeply  spiritual  and  uplifting.  Upon  the  suggestion  of  Mrs.  J.  O. 
Carr  that  we  make  our  annual  report  for  this  year  a  "Worth  Num- 
ber" our  Minutes  for  1922  were  dedicated  to  them  and  contained 
also  a  message  from  them  to  us. 

Two  meetings  of  the  Executive  Committee  had  transacted  much 
work  during  the  year.  We  had  lost  our  Recording  Secretary  by 
removal  from  the  Presbytery  and  Mrs.  J.  O.  Carr  had  generously 
stepped  into  the  breach  and  in  addition  to  her  work  as  Foreign 
Mission  Secretary  acted  as  Recording  Secretary  as  well. 

There  were  four  Young  People's  Rallies  held  in  the  summer 
with  an  attendance  of  475,  an  increase  of  325  over  the  previous 
year.  The  young  people  themselves  presided  and  took  active  part 
on  the  program.  Rev.  J.  W.  Allen  of  Luebo,  Africa,  spoke  at  two 
of  these  meetings.  Mrs.  Harvey's  report  showed  a  healthly  growth 
in  Young  People's  work.  She  had  stressed,  not  more  organizations, 
but  stronger  and  more  efficient  ones  and  thirty-six  Young  People's 
organizations  reported  an  increase  of  membership  from  584  to  977 ; 
twenty-four  Mission  Study  classes  with  an  enrollment  of  508,  an 
increase  of  206  over  the  previous  year.  The  banner  for  highest 
efficiency  went  to  the  Junior  Auxiliary  of  First  Church,  Wil- 
mington. 

The  Day  of  Prayer  had  been  held  in  five  of  the  six  districts. 
The  chief  speakers  were  Mrs.  Lacy  Little  and  Miss  Jessie  Hall 
of  our  China  Mission.  Miss  Jane  Hall  and  Mrs.  J.  O.  Carr  pre- 
sented the  needs  of  our  Kiangyin  Hospital. 

The  President's  financial  report  at  the  annual  meeting  showed 
a  decrease  in  gifts  of  $4,000.00,  this  falling  off  being  largely  in 
gifts  to  Miscellaneous  Benevolences.  While  distressing,  it  was  not 
unexpected,  owing  to  the  financial  depression  all  over  our  territory. 


70  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

The  membership  had  increased  104  and  198  Tithers  and  181  Family 
Altars  were  reported. 

Mrs.  French  reported  only  $1,246.00  lacking  to  complete  our 
apportionment  of  the  Orphanage  Building  Fund,  and  this  has  since 
been  sent  in.  Miss  Faison  reported  much  building  and  repairing 
at  Grove  Institute  and  contributions  from  the  Presbyterial  of 
$345.00. 

There  were  fifteen  volunteers  for  Foreign  Mission  service  and 
gifts  to  Foreign  Missions  had  totaled  $4,938.00,  an  increase  of 
$449.00  over  the  previous  year. 

At  the  annual  meeting  the  President  recommended  that  the 
Standard  of  Efficiency  adopted  by  the  Presbyterial  be  discontinued, 
and  in  its  stead  the  Presbyterial  adopt  the  Standard  of  Excellence 
sent  out  by  the  Woman's  Auxiliary  of  the  Southern  Church.  Also 
that  we  send  a  delegate  to  the  Conference  for  Colored  Women  at 
Atlanta.  Both  recommendations  were  adopted,  and  Lillie  Exum  of 
Chadbourn,  wife  of  Rev.  John  Exum,  was  chosen  by  the  committee 
as  delegate  to  the  Atlanta  Conference.  The  recommendation  of 
the  Executive  Committee  that  the  Vice-President  serve  as  Cor- 
responding Secretary  was  adopted.  The  Elizabeth  McRae  ban- 
ner for  highest  efficiency  was  awarded  to  the  South  River  Aux- 
iliary, Garland.  After  Miss  Faison's  report  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hollings- 
worth  were  given  a  rising  vote  of  thanks  for  their  excellent  six 
year's  work  at  Grove  Institute. 

The  Presbyterial  voted  to  raise  $2,000.00  to  build  a  home  for 
Chinese  doctors  at  Kiangyin  Hospital,  in  addition  to  our  regular 
$1,600.00  for  the  support  of  the  Hospital.  The  recommendation 
of  the  Foreign  Mission  Secretary  that  all  our  Foreign  Mission 
money  not  otherwise  pledged  be  given  to  this  cause  was  adopted. 
Dr.  and  Mrs.  Worth  presented  the  Young  People  of  the  Presby- 
terial with  a  handsome  engraved  silver  shield  which  had  been  pre- 
sented to  them  by  the  Mayor,  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  and  other 
gentry  as  a  parting  gift  upon  the  departure  from  China  for  their 
year's  leave.  This  is  to  be  used  as  a  reward  in  some  department 
of  Young  People's  work. 


Kiaxgyix  Hospital,  Kiangyix,  China. 
Built  by  Wilmington  Presbyterial  Auxiliary. 


®uv  ^restopterial  Special:  i^tangpin  Jloapttal 

Sr.  (George  C.  UQortfi  in  Charge 


From  the  North  Carolina  Presbyterian,  Wilmington,  1ST.  C,  April 
2,  1896,  I  quote  the  following: 

This  week  we  present  faces  familiar  and  dear  to  many  of  our  readers, 
those  of  the  two  young  missionaries  who  went  forth  last  summer  from 
the  First  Presbyterian  church  of  Wilmington,  N.  C. 

George  Clarkson  Worth  is  the  second  (surviving)  son  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
David  G.  Worth,  and  grandson  of  Governor  Worth.  He  was  born  in  Wil- 
mington, Oct.  29th,  1867.  He  very  early  manifested  piety  towards  God 
and  fidelity  to  all  the  relations  in  life.  He  made  confession  of  Christ  and 
was  received  into  the  communion  of  the  First  church,  Wilmington,  on 
Jan.  11th,  1884.  He  at  once  became  active  in  service  and  his  influence  in 
the  Bingham  school  was  blessed  in  leading  several  of  his  companions  to 
the  Saviour.  In  the  Fall  of  1887  he  was  at  his  home  again  and  was  in- 
strumental in  enlisting  the  co-operation  of  four  other  young  men  in  organ- 
izing the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  of  this  city.  While  at  Chapel 
Hill  he  threw  himself  heartily  into  the  Students'  Volunteer  movement. 
At  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  convention  held  here  in  the  Spring  of  1889,  he  publicly 
announced  his  purpose — formed  several  years  before — of  becoming  a  medi- 
cal missionary,  and  visited  several  of  the  institutions  of  the  State  in  the 
interests  of  the  movement.  From  Chapel  Hill  he  went  for  his  medical 
course  to  the  University  of  Virginia  and  thence  to  the  University  of  New 
York,  where  he  completed  his  studies,  and  entered  upon  two  successive 
terms  of  hospital  work,  the  last  of  which  he  completed  in  June,  1895. 

Emma  Marie  Chadbourn  was  also  a  child  of  the  First  church  the  daugh- 
ter of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wm.  H.  Chadbourn.  When  the  present  pastor,  Dr. 
Hoge,  took  charge  of  the  congregation  she  was  the  first  to  come  forward 
to  make  confession  of  Christ,  and  was  received  at  the  first  communion, 
Jan.  1886,  with  twenty-one  others  into  the  full  fellowship  of  the  church. 
She  became  one  of  the  most  active  members  of  a  band  of  young  girls  or- 
ganized by  her  aunt,  Mrs.  George  Chadbourn,  and  finally  became  its  leader. 
Early  in  1888  she  communicated  to  her  pastor  her  desire  to  become  a 
foreign  missionary,  and  in  June,  1889,  announced  her  purpose  at  the 
Ladies  Foreign  Missionary  Convention  of  the  Presbytery.  She  had  been 
educated  in  the  Tileston  school  in  this  city  in  which  she  had  become  a 
teacher,  but  went  to  Bradford,  Mass.,  to  complete  her  education  in  that 
school  so  associated  wih  the  preparation  of  noble  women  for  Christian 
missionaries  and  workers.  On  her  return  she  desired  to  devote  her  time 
to  home  and  Christian  work,  but  yielded  to  the  urgency  of  the  Superin- 
tendent of  Public  Schools,  and  for  a  year  and  a  half  taught  the  higher 
branches  in  the  schools.  Meanwhile  she  was  active  in  the  Church  mission 
work  and  had  one  of  the  most  important  classes  in  the  Sunday-school. 

[71] 


72  The   "Wilmington   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

In  January,  1895,  the  pastor  returned  from  a  public  meeting  and  said 
to  his  wife:  "I  saw  two  young  people  together  tonight  that  ought  to  have 
gotten  together  long  ago,  and  they  looked  very  well  satisfied."  In  April 
they  called  to  tell  him  of  their  engagement,  and  received  his  congratula- 
tions and  blessing.  July  21st  he  united  their  hands  in  marriage.  August 
1st  an  overflowing  congregation  assembled  at  the  church  to  bid  them 
farewell  and  Godspeed,  and  the  next  day  their  friends  bade  them  a  tearful 
goodbye  as  they  set  out  on  their  long  journey.  They  arrived  in  Shanghai 
during  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Mission  and  were  located  at  Wusih. 
Their  letters  are  a  source  of  constant  delight  and  inspiration  to  their 
friends,  and  are  full  of  happiness  in  their  life  work. 

They  went  out  from  homes  where  they  had  every  comfort  and  with  the 
brightest  prospects  at  home  to  undergo  the  hardships  and  privations  of 
a  missionary's  life  in  China.  They  are  practically  self-supporting,  as  the 
cost  of  the  entire  journey  was  paid  by  their  own  families,  and  Dr.  Worth 
and  his  father  have  provided  for  their  entire  salary.  The  Westminster 
League  of  the  church  supplies  Dr.  Worth's  medicines  and  the  L.  F.  M.  S. 
is  contributing  for  building  him  a  hospital  in  Wusih. 

From  the  same  paper  I  quote  the  following: 

First  Church,  Wilmington. — This  Church  addressed  these  noble  and 
pathetic  words  to  two  of  its  missionaries  as  they  go  away  to  the  Foreign 
field.  The  words  are  all  the  more  touching  because  the  departing  mis- 
sionaries are  members  who  grew  up  in  the  Church:  To  Dr.  and  Mrs.  George 
C.  Worth: 

Your  home  Church  bids  you  farewell  and  Godspeed.  As  you  depart  once 
more  from  the  Church  of  your  youth,  may  it  bring  you  no  little  comfort 
to  remember  that  your  places  there  are  not  left  vacant;  that,  not  only  on 
her  written  records,  but  even  in  the  very  activities  and  worship  of  a 
blessed  and  venerable  Church,  you  have  an  honored  part. 

In  the  years  to  come,  as  the  procossion  lengthens  from  her  doors,  bear- 
ing the  Saving  name  of  Him  who  is  not  willing  that  any  should  perish, 
your  Church  will  ever  be  mindful  that  you  were  the  first  who  went  to 
serve  the  King  in  a  land  that  is  very  far  off.  And  now  may  you  return 
in  the  strength  of  the  Lord  and  in  the  power  of  His  might,  with  joy  and 
great  rejoicing.  For  you  are  of  the  King's  cup-bearers,  offering  Him  in 
your  daily  service  the  wine  of  utmost  obedience.  May  the  promised  re- 
ward of  such  obedience  on  the  part  of  her  children  return  upon  the  Church 
at  home,  filling  her  with  the  spirit  of  surrender  and  of  service  with  the 
very  spirit  of  Christ. 

In  our  farewell  we  give  you,  as  you  go,  the  tender  regard  of  friends  and 
the  trust  of  fellow-workers.  We  pledge  you  our  prayers,  that  they  may 
still  be  an  overcoming  power  before  you  in  the  way  you  go.  The  grace  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  be  with  you. 

Attention  has  already  been  called  to  the  fact  that  Miss  Emma 
Chadbourn  who  afterwards  became  Mrs.  Worth  first  publicly  an- 
nounced her  intention  of  becoming  a  foreign  missionary  at  the 
first  Consecration  Service  in  1889. 


Growth  and  Expansion  73 

These  two  went  out  from  the  Church  in  which  our  Union  was 
organized  and  while  self-supporting,  they  are  under  care  of  our 
Presbytery.  So  it  was  the  natural  and  happy  consequence  that  the 
Presbyterial  has  always  taken  an  active  loving  interest  in  them 
and  the  work  they  represent.  We  adopted  them  as  special  objcets 
of  our  prayers,  and  our  foreign  mission  gifts.  The  following  ex- 
tracts from  ]\Iiss  Murphy's  reports  will  best  give  the  outline  of  our 
work  for  this  Presbyterial  Special: 

In  the  spring  of  1903,  the  idea  first  came  to  us  to  build  a  hospital  for 
Dr.  Worth's  work  in  Kiangyin.  Dr.  Worth  assured  us  that  this  building 
was  the  greatest  need  of  the  station  at  that  time.  But  it  required  some 
time  for  the  Union  to  grasp  the  proposed  plan,  and  the  object  was  formally 
adopted  at  a  called  meeting  of  our  Executive  Committee  in  August,  1904. 

Meanwhile  the  faith  and  enthusiasm  of  youth  had  grasped  the  idea  at  once. 
The  first  contribution  credited  to  the  hospital  fund  was  sent  during  Novem- 
ber, 1903,  by  the  "Earnest  Workers"  of  Caswell  church,  a  fact  in  which  the 
members  of  that  band  continue  to  exult  to  this  day. 

We  set  out  to  raise  $4,000  in  two  years — 80  shares,  of  $50.00  each.  During 
that  winter  (1904)  Dr.  Worth  sent  us  certificates  printed  in  Shanghai,  a 
picture  of  himself  with  a  group  of  patients  in  front  of  the  native  building 
then  being  used  as  hospital  quarters. 

By  June,  1905  33  shares  were  pledged  and  in  less  than  three  years  the 
fund  of  $4,000  raised  and  the  hospital  built. 

In  April,  1907,  the  first  meeting  of  the  Presbytery  of  our  church  in  China 
was  held  in  Kiangyin  in  our  hospital  chapel — the  first  use  of  the  building. 
Dr.  Worth  came  home  just  at  that  time,  and  gave  account  of  what  has 
always  seemed  to  us  a  wonderful  achievement,  in  the  way  of  making  money 
and  space  count  in  the  buildings  and  grounds. 

At  the  same  time  he  brought  us  word  that  a  separate  woman's  ward 
must  be  added  at  a  cost  of  $2,500. 

To  condense  history,  and  to  trace  the  over-ruling  for  our  good,  the  fol- 
lowing facts  stand  out: 

It  was  never  possible  to  buy  additional  land.  In  the  hope  of  procuring 
this  land,  the  building  of  the  ward  was  delayed.  The  money  which  was 
sent  was  used  for  contingent  needs.  Water  works  were  installed,  a  house 
was  built  for  storing  fuel,  and  a  small  building  of  three  (3)  rooms  for 
contagious  cases.  Five  hundred  dollars  remained  when  Dr.  Worth  came 
home  in  February,  1911,  and  told  us  that  the  rapidly  growing  work  de- 
manded a  woman's  ward,  an  operating  room,  and  proper  surgical  equip- 
ment, all  of  which  would  cost  $6,000,  this  fund  to  be  in  hand  on  his  return 
to  China  in  September,  1912.  Though  the  necessity  and  urgency  for  this 
completing  of  our  hospital  plant  were  so  apparent,  and  the  finger  pointing 
so  plainly  to  this  as  the  next  piece  of  work  for  us,  our  committee  held 
three  meetings,  and  the  third  meeting  adjourned  with  the  question  not 
settled  as  to  whether  or  not  we  could  attempt  o  raise  the  $6,000  within 
the  limit  of  time.  The  decision  was  soon  made,  however,  and  the  cam- 
paign begun. 


74  The   "Wilmington   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

Just  as  the  uniting  of  our  forces  at  the  beginning  to  build  the  hospital 
strengthened  and  broadened  our  work,  so  this  larger  undertaking  aroused 
many  societies  to  greater  things,  and  brought  gifts  from  many  individuals. 

The  doctors  of  Wilmington,  and  Dr.  Ben  Graham,  from  outside  the  city, 
gave  a  steam  sterilizer;  the  Saint  Andrew's  Ladies'  Society  and  "Christian 
Endeavor"  gave  a  private  room  of  two  cots,  to  be  named  in  honor  of  Dr. 
and  Mrs.  McClure;  the  Duplin  Roads  Ladies'  Society  and  Girls'  Band  gave 
a  private  room  of  one  cot;  Miss  Margaret  M.  Craig  gave  a  private  room  of 
one  cot;  Mr.  C.  C.  Murphy  gave  a  private  room  of  one  cot,  Mr.  Paul  Murphy 
giving  the  cot.    Other  memorial  cots  have  been  given. 

The  necessary  delay  of  Dr.  Worth's  return  to  China  extended  the  time 
for  our  raising  the  fund,  but  in  February,  1913,  only  half  the  amount 
($3,000)   was  in  hand.     Just  here  we  must  turn  back  a  few  pages. 

At  Montreat,  summer  of  1910,  the  missionaries  from  China  laid  it  upon 
our  hearts  very  earnestly  that  Dr.  Worth's  work  had  been  for  some  time 
entirely  too  heavy,  and  was  increasingly  so.  In  Dr.  Worth's  letter  to  the 
Union  received  that  fall,  he  said  that  the  previous  year  had  proved  beyond 
question  that  we  must  have  another  physician  at  Kiangyin,  and  he  sent 
request  that  we  unite  in  the  definite  prayer  for  a  consecrated,  capable 
physician  to  share  the  work  in  our  hospital. 

In  February,  of  this  year,  the  matter  stood  thus:  Dr.  Frank  Crawford, 
of  Virginia,  just  such  an  one  as  Dr.  Worth  desired,  was  ready,  after  his 
marriage,  to  go  out  in  the  fall  to  Kiangyin.  The  committee  at  Nashville 
had  given  Dr.  Crawford  appointment  to  the  Mid-China  Mission. 

At  the  same  meeting  the  committee  decided  that  no  new  missionaries 
could  be  sent  out  unless  a  salary  of  $1,200  a  year  was  pledged.  On  the 
15th  of  February  our  Presbyterial  Committee  was  called  together  to  con- 
sider the  following  proposal:  Mrs.  James  Sprunt  offered  to  complete  the 
hospital  fund  by  a  gift  of  $3,000,  if  the  Presbyterial  would  take  the  sup- 
port of  Dr.  Crawford  and  his  wife — $2,400  a  year. 

This  undertaking  meant  the  raising  of  $1,000  by  October  1st,  1913,  for 
out-going  expenses.    Their  salary  beginning  the  day  they  reached  Kiangyin. 

What  did  this  mean  to  us? 

Why,  we  had  been  afraid  we  could  not  raise  the  six  thousand  dollars! 
With  faltering  faith  we  had  begun  the  task.  As  we  wrought  on  we  had 
asked  Him,  whose  work  it  was  to  help,  to  enable,  to  give  us  this  fund,  and 
He  had  given  it.  Let  us  dwell  on  this  fact  apart  from  other  facts — seeing 
clearly  that  wherein  we  lacked  faith  were  we  rebuked;  in  so  far  as  our 
faith  reached  up,  we  have  received  the  "much  more"  from  our  Heavenly 
Father.  By  this  dealing  we  are  bidden,  that  when  the  way  is  pointed  out, 
we  may  go  forward  and  trust  Him  who  points  the  way. 

Now,  consider  other  facts.  This  fund  was  not  given  us  until  the  next 
task  was  set  before  us,  and  so  duty  is  plain.  With  grateful  hearts  we 
accepted  the  three  thousand  dollars.  Nor  was  this  all.  A  little  later 
in  the  Spring  it  came  to  the  ears  of  these  gracious  givers,  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Sprunt,  that  the  surgical  equipment  actually  needed  would  require 
another    thousand    dollars,    and    that    the    hospital    chapel   and    the    men's 


Growth  and  Expansion  75 

ward  needed  enlarging  at  a  cost  of  $2,000,  so  another  gift  of  $3,000  was 
gladly  and  readily  made — "Exceeding  abundantly  above  all  we  asked  or 
thought!"  Without  any  effort  of  ours,  there  has  come  to  us  for  this 
beloved  work  as  much  from  one  giver  as  we  set  out  to  raise  by  a  great 
effort  of  our  own. 

From  the  15th  of  February,  1913,  all  receipts  have  gone  toward  the 
$1,000,  due  October  1st.  This  has  reached  about  $600.  It  is  with  pleasure 
I  report  the  $1,000  more  than  half  raised,  but  we  must  remind  ourselves 
that  after  June  there  are  only  three  months  of  time.  This  fund 
must  be  in  Nashville  by  October  1st.  This  new  work  will  train  us  into 
habits  of  promptness.  A  building  fund  may  wait,  but  the  living  salary 
must  be  supplied.  Twelve  hundred  dollars  every  six  months  is  our  pledge, 
and   we   must   be   prompt   and   faithful. 

It  transpired  that  Dr.  Crawford  did  not  carry  a  wife  out  "with 
him  as  we  expected  him  to  do,  so  we  did  not  have  to  raise  the 
$2,400.00,  but  $1,200.00,  which  was  promptly  and  easily  secured 
with  the  exception  of  the  years  1914  and  1915.  Dr.  Crawford 
married  after  being  in  the  field  a  few  years  and  in  1918-1919 
$600.00  additional  was  raised  to  aid  in  the  support  of  Mrs.  Craw- 
ford. In  1919  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Crawford  were  transferred  to  another 
mission  field  that  had  lost  their  only  doctor  and  Miss  Albaugh,  the 
trained  nurse  who  went  out  to  our  Hospital  in  1908,  had  died. 

I  quote  from  Miss  Murphy's  report  in  1920 : 

REPORT  FROM  OUR  HOSPITAL 

A  letter  received  in  February  from  Dr.  Worth  contains  the  following: 
"We  have  finally  decided  that  we  cannot  return  home  on  furlough  this 
year,  though  it  is  the  appointed  time,  for  the  reason  that  we  just  cannot 
leave  the  hospital  without  either  another  doctor  or  a  nurse.  We  had  been 
looking  forward  to  a  visit  home  this  year,  after  seven  years  of  absence, 
and  to  us  it  is  no  small  disappointment  that  the  furlough  must  be  aban- 
doned  for   the   present. 

"My  last  letter  to  you  spoke  of  our  having  secured  the  temporary  serv- 
ices of  a  nurse  from  the  National  Church  of  Scotland  Mission,  Miss  Mc- 
Farland,  but  we  have  lately  been  deeply  disappointed  to  hear  from  her 
that  she  cannot  come.  We  have  just  tried  to  secure  a  nurse  from  the 
Northern  Presbyterian  Mission,  but  failed.  Here  we  are  again  without 
the  least  prospect  on  the  field  and  none  that  we  hear  of  from  home.  Our 
Nurses'  Training  School  is  registered  under  the  Nurses'  Association  of 
China  as  a  hospital  and  school  of  the  first-class,  and  our  nurses  are 
eligible  for  diplomas  from  the  Association  in  addition  to  our  local  diploma. 
This  is  a  position  from  which  we  shall  be  obliged  to  withdraw  or  be 
deleted  unless  we  soon  secure  a  foreign  trained  nurse  to  become  our 
nurses'  superintendent.  It  troubles  us  very  much.  If  Mrs.  Worth  and 
I  should  leave  on  furlough,  the  blow  would  fall  at  once,  as  the  Nurses' 
Association  is  trying  to  maintain  a  very  high  standard  of  excellence  and 


76  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

they  would  be  obliged  to  withdraw  our  registry.  Such  an  event  would 
affect  our  standing  in  Chinese  eyes  and  would  give  great  distress  to  our 
pupils.  It  is  a  matter  of  first  importance  to  us  that  we  have  a  nurse  as 
soon  as  a  suitable  one  can  be  sent  out.  I  am  only  mentioning  this  in 
such  detail  so  that  you  can  ask  our  people  to  remember  our  hospital  with 
especial  prayer  that  God  will  provide  a  nurse,  as  well  as  another  doctor, 
to  take  Dr.  Crawford's  place." 

Just  here,  let  me  plead  that  the  women  of  our  Presbyterial  read  and 
re-read  what  Dr.  "Worth  has  said  until  it  is  laid  upon  your  hearts  in 
such  a  way  that  from  your  hearts  and  lips  there  shall  go  up  to  God 
daily  prayer — the  three-fold  petition:  That  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Worth  shall  have 
strength  and  courage  for  this  year  of  extended  service  when  they  so 
sorely  need  the  furlough  that  is  due;  for  the  nurse,  that  the  "Lord  of 
the  harvest"  shall  send  the  right  one  speedily;  for  the  doctor,  that  if 
it  is  God's  will,  Dr.  Crawford  be  sent  back  to  Kiangyin  (this  is  the  great 
desire  of  both  Dr.  Crawford  and  Dr.  Worth,  though  both  defer  to  do  that 
which  is  right  and  best  for  the  whole  Mission). 

In  addition  to  these  needs  which  urge  us  to  think  often  and  pray  much, 
there  are  items  of  encouragement  gleaned  from  reports  during  recent 
months. 

During  the  epidemic  of  influenza  and  spinal  meningitis  they  wrote: 
"There  have  been  many  deaths  all  through  the  surrounding  country.  The 
hospital  has  been  kept  full.  We  have  been  protected  thus  far,  but  there 
have  been  deaths  all  around  us." 

Another  letter  gives  numbers  received  into  the  church  each  year  since 
1916,  that  of  a  total  between  three  and  four  hundred.  We  thank  God  for 
these. 

From  the  Calendar  of  First  Church,  Wilmington,  December  28,  1919, 
we  quote:  "Mr.  Chas.  W.  Worth,  Jr.,  a  son  of  our  beloved  Elder  and 
Missionary,  Dr.  Geo.  C.  Worth,  having  completed  his  course  at  Davidson, 
has  gone  to  Union  Theological  Seminary  as  a  theological  student  and 
candidate   for   the   Gospel   Ministry." 

It  is  a  temptation  to  give  verbatim  the  portion  referring  to  our  hospital 
from  the  report  to  the  Inter-Ghurch-World  Movement  Campaign  Survey. 
I  will  give  a  brief  portion:  "Our  hospital  is  thus  not  only  the  sole  hope 
of  a  multitnde  of  people,  and  will  remain  so,  but  it  is  also  the  one 
Christian  hospital,  stands  for  the  great  CAUSE,  and  must  either  be  an 
honor  to  that  CAUSE  and  reflect  credit  upon  it,  or  else  by  its  inefficiency, 
lack  of  essential  equipment,  or  otherwise,  attract  criticism  and  depreciation, 
which  depreciation  and  criticism  always  is  primarily  directed  at  the  Church, 
the  hospital  being  inseparable  from  the  Church  and  being  regarded  by 
the  outsider  as  simply  a  part  of  the  Church  visible.  If  the  hospital  or 
the  school  is  not  up-to-date  they  do  not  understand  why  the  Christian  cause 
cannot  keep  its  representative  institutions  up-to-date.  This  is  a  point  we 
feel  very  keenly,  especially  as  there  is  really  no  answer  to  it." 

From  the  Keport  of  1921 : 


Growth  and  Expansion  77 

Dr.  W.  H.  Sprunt,  Jr.,  wrote  from  Kiangyin  January  23,  1921:  "I  have 
never  met  anyone  who  impressed  me  as  much  as  Dr.  Worth  does.  It  is  no 
wonder  that  the  Chinese  class  him  with  their  great  men.  *  *  *  *  *  He  has 
the  capacity  to  put  himself  in  the  other  fellow's  place  better  than  anyone 
I've  ever  known.  At  present  he  is  the  only  man  on  his  feet  at  the  Kiangyin 
station,  and  has  all  the  worries  and  responsibilities  of  the  whole  place.  If 
he  never  said  a  word  hisi  life  would  have  more  influence  than  the  preaching 
of  half  a  dozen  ordinary  men.  *****  i  don't  know  just  how  well  informed 
you,  and  the  others  who  support  Kiangyin,  are  about,  the  equipment,  but  the 
two  things  that  impressed  me  were  the  absence  of  an  X-Ray  outfit  and  water- 
works. *****  The  Chinese  know  that  good  hospitals  have  X-Ray  equip- 
ment, and  many  go  to  Shanghai  to  get  the  benefit  of  it.  Dr.  Worth  is 
awfully  handicapped  in  this  respect  and  it  does  not  look  fair  to  me  to  make 
a  man  run  a  hospital  without  it." 

This  shows  the  situation  vividly  as  it  appears  to  an  outside  observer. 

Our  Hospital  has  lost  its  registry  in  the  Nurses'  Association  of  China 
because  so  long  a  time  has  elapsed  since  there  has  been  a  foreign  nurse  at 
the  head,  and  this  in  spite  of  the  Worths  staying  on  a  year  and  a  half  over 
time  in  the  hope  of  averting  this  disaster. 

Dr.  and  Mrs.  Worth  are  to  come  home  this  summer,  leaving  the  hospital 
in  the  care  of  Dr.  Nyi,  a  Chinese  physician,  and  Miss  Corriher  of  the 
Kashing  Hospital,  lent  to  us  for  a  year. 

The  Presbyterial  has  already  decided  that  the  hospital  support  shall 
henceforth  be  called  "Kiangyin  Hospital  Fund,"  precluding  further  con- 
fusion. 

Dr.  aiid  Mrs.  Worth  spent  the  year  beginning  in  the  summer  of 
1921  to  1922  in  this  country  on  furlough  and  interest  was  revived 
to  such  an  extent  that  our  Presbyterial  is  undertaking  to  give  this 
year  $1,600.00  to  the  support  of  the  hospital  and  $2,00.0.00  for 
permanent  improvements.  This  will  be  spent  in  the  erection  of  a 
home  for  our  two  Chinese  physicians  and  their  families. 

The  following  report  given  by  Mrs.  Worth  at  the  1922  Presby- 
terial Convention  brings  the  history  of  our  special  to  date: 

THE  KIANGYIN   HOSPITAL 
(By  Mrs.  George  C.  Worth.) 

After  an  absence  of  nine  years  it  was  a  great  pleasure  to  Dr.  Worth 
and  to  me  to  attend  a  meeting  of  the  Presbyerial.  To  us  there  is  manifest 
a  very  great  improvement  along  all  lines;  an  increased  attendance,  a  more 
business-like  and  expeditious  manner  of  conducting  the  meetings,  well 
prepared  and  encouraging  reports,  and  much  more  general  information  and 
interest  among  the  delegates  in  all  kinds  of  work. 

It  was  a  great  joy  to  us  to  see  the  loving  interest  which  all  manifest  in 
the  work  of  the  Kiangyin  Hospital,  which  has  been  the  especial  charge  of 
this  Presbyterial  since  1904.  The  two  large  wards,  one  for  male  patients 
and  one  for  women,  as  well  as  the  outbuildings,  which  are  used  as  isolation 


78  The   Wilmington   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

wards,  kitchen,  laundry,  bathrooms,  storerooms,  nurses'  quarters,  etc., 
were  all  built  by  the  women  and  children  of  Wilmington  Presbyterial.  "We 
have  another  ward,  which  will  accommodate  about  fifteen  patients  which 
was  built  and  furnished  by  the  well-to-do  Chinese  of  our  city.  The  same 
friends  are  now  giving  an  X-Ray  plant  to  the  institution. 

We  are  supposed  to  have  ninety  beds;  but  as  we  have  insufficient  room 
for  our  nurses  and  no  home  for  the  Chinese  doctors  and  their  families, 
they  are  now  occupying  some  of  the  private  rooms.  We  are  most  happy  that 
the  Presbyterial  at  this  meeting  promised  to  raise  during  this  year  the 
$2,000  which  is  needed  to  build  a  double  house  for  homes  for  our  two 
Chinese  physicians  and  their  families,  in  addition  to  the  $1,600  which  is 
our  annual  appropriation  to  cover  our  deficit.  The  fees  and  contributions 
from  the  Chinese  now  cover  seventy-five  per  cent,  of  the  expense  and  the 
Presbyterial  supplies  the  other  twenty-five  per  cent. 

Last  year  the  hospital  reported  one  American  physician,  no  American 
trained  nurse,  three  Chinese  physicians,  fourteen  student  nurses,  five 
graduate  nurses,  eight  hundred  and  eight  in-patients,  eighty-nine  major 
operations,  6,516  individuals  treated,  and  an  income  of  $10,707.18.  (Chinese 
currency.) 

There  was  an  epidemic  of  cerebro-spinal  meningitis  during  the  winter, 
and  one  of  cholera  in  the  summer.  The  hospital  was  much  in  demand  and 
many  lives  were  saved.  We  are  grateful  to  report  that  none  of  our  staff 
died,  though  a  number  of  them  had  cholera. 

Miss  Nesbit  has  divided  her  time  the  past  year  between  Soochow  and 
Kiangyin.  She  is  a  trained  accountant,  and  has  relieved  all  those  in  charge 
of  our  institutions  of  the  burden  of  accounts  and  bookkeeping. 

Dr.  Worth  was  in  a  very  run  down  physical  condition  when  we  returned 
to  the  United  States  last  August,  but  a  visit  to  the  Mayo  Hospital  in 
Rochester,  Minn.,  and  a  stay  in  St.  Luke's  Hospital  in  Richmond,  Va., 
have  worked  wonders,  and  he  is  now  well  and  strong  and  eager  to  return 
to  China. 

All  our  friends  will  rejoice  with  us  that  our  son,  Charles  W.  Worth,  Jr., 
is  to  be  ordained  as  a  minister  of  the  Gospel  in  May,  and  expects  to  return 
to  China  as  a  missionary  during  the  summer,  taking  as  his  bride  Miss 
Grace  McAlpine,  who  was  born  in  Japan,  and  who  is  a  third  generation 
missionary  (or  whose  parents  and  grandparents  were  missionaries  to  that 
land). 

We  know  that  your  prayers  will  go  with  us,  and  we  trust  that  the  doctors 
and  nurses  who  are  so  much  needed  in  all  our  mission  hospitals  will  soon 
be  found  and  sent  out. 


18884922 
"  OTitjat  ?|atf)  (goo  Wtouqftl " 

In  1888  our  Presbyterial  Auxiliary  embraced  eight  ladies'  and 
three  children's  societies — eleven  in  all.  The  membership  was  288 
and  gifts  for  the  year  were  $273.00.  There  were  eight  officers  and 
we  worked  and  studied  for  one  cause,  viz :    Foreign  Missions. 

In  1922  we  have  thirty-four  Women's  Auxiliaries  with  a  mem- 
bership of  1,271,  contributing  in  1921,  our  high-water  mark, 
$22,125.00  and  in  1922,  $18,079.00;  we  have  thirty-six  Young- 
People's  Auxiliaries  with  a  membership  of  977,  contributing  in 
1921,  $1,088.00  and  in  1922,  $1,108.00.  In  all  seventy  Auxiliaries, 
with  a  combined  membership  of  2,271,  contributing  in  1921, 
$23,213.00;  in  1922,  $19,187.00.  We  have  thirty  officers  repre- 
senting nine  causes  of  church  work.  Instead  of  one  annual  meeting 
we  have  in  addition  six  district  meetings  in  the  fall  and  four 
Young  People's  meetings  in  the  summer — eleven  in  all.  Instead 
of  the  modest  four-page  Minutes  of  1901,  it  took  forty  pages  to 
present  all  phases  of  the  year's  activities  in  1922.  Instead  of  one 
lone  sister  Presbyterial  Union  in  Virginia  we  now  exchange  greet- 
ings and  measure  accomplishments  with  eighty-one  other  Presby- 
terials  of  the  Woman's  Auxiliary  of  the  Southern  Presbyterian 
Church  and  with  six  in  our  own  State.  Truly  we  can  say,  as  did 
Jacob  to  God  at  Mahanaim,  "With  my  staff  I  passed  over  this 
Jordan,  and  now  I  am  become  two  bands."  ~Not  two,  but  many 
bands ! 

"Afterward  he  brought  me  again  unto  the  door  of  the  house; 
behold,  waters  issued  out  from  under  the  threshold  of  the  house 
eastward,  at  the  south  side  of  the  altar.  .  .  .  And  when  the  man 
that  had  the  line  in  his  hand  went  forth  eastward,  he  measured  a 
thousand  cubits,  and  he  brought  me  through  the  waters ;  the  waters 
were  to  the  ankles.  Again  he  measured  a  thousand — the  waters 
were  to  the  knees.  Again  he  measured  a  thousand; — the  waters 
were  to  the  loins.  Afterwards  he  measured  a  thousand ;  and  it  was 
a  river  that  I  could  not  pass  over :  for  the  waters  were  risen,  waters 

79] 


80  The   Wilmington    Peesbytekial   Auxiliary 

to  swim  in,  a  river  that  could  not  be  passed  over.  .  .  .  At  the 
hank  of  the  river  were  very  many  trees.  Then  he  said  unto  me, 
These  waters  issue  out  toward  the  east  country,  and  go  down  into 
the  desert,  and  go  into  the  sea ;  which  being  brought  forth  into 
the  sea,  the  waters  shall  be  healed.  .  .  .  By  the  river  upon  the 
bank  thereof,  on  this  side  and  on  that  side,  shall  grow  all  trees  for 
meat,  whose  leaf  shall  not  fade,  neither  shall  the  fruit  thereof  be 
consumed;  it  shall  bring  forth  new  fruits  according  to  its  months, 
because  their  waters  they  issued  out  of  the  sanctuary:  and  the  fruit 
thereof  shall  be  for  meat  and  the  leaf  thereof  for  medicine." 

Thirty-four  years  of  vigorous  life  and  growth !  Wilmington 
Presbyterial  Auxiliary,  we  hail  thee!  We  honor  thy  founders  and 
Godly  leaders,  thy  generous,  self-denying  supporters.  They  hand 
to  us  a  glorious  heritage.  Your  historian  has  sought  to  catch,  to 
hold  and  to  pass  on  to  you  that  subtle,  indefinable  but  glorious  and 
vital  something  that  always  abides  in  the  history,  ideals  and  tradi- 
tions of  any  worth-while  organization.  May  we  by  looking  backward 
not  lose  the  race,  but  rather  inspired  by  what  has  been  accomplished 
and  strengthened  by  examples  of  earnest  and  Godly  women,  may 
we  "thank  God  and  take  courage"  for  the  accomplishment  of  larger 
things  in  the  future.  To  those  of  you  who  now  walk  in  the  strength 
and  gladness  and  vigor  of  youth,  we  pass  on  this  royal  banner  of 
united  service  for  the  Master.  Honor  and  cherish  your  Presby- 
terial Auxiliary;  foster  its  ideals,  enlarge  its  usefulness  and  in- 
terests, pass  it  on  to  the  next  generation  stronger  than  you  found 
it,  for  the  promise  is  to  you  and  to  your  children.  "Continue  thou 
in  the  things  which  thou  hast  learned  and  hast  been  assured  of, 
knowing  of  whom  thou  hast  learned  them."  And  as  decade  succeeds 
decade,  and  the  tribes  come  up  to  your  annual  meetings — "to  the 
testimony  of  Israel,  to  give  thanks  unto  the  name  of  the  Lord" — 
review  your  history  and  add  a  worthy  chapter  to  that  already  re- 
corded. Tea,  "Walk  about  Zion,  and  go  round  about  her;  tell  the 
towers  thereof.  Mark  ye  well  her  bulwarks,  consider  her  palaces, 
that  ye  may  tell  it  to  the  generation  following.  For  this  God  is 
our  God  forever  and  ever;  he  will  be  our  guide  even  unto  death." 


PRESBYTERIAL  OFFICERS. 


"Not  even  a  Homer  can  make  a  list  of  names  interesting,  even 
though  they  be  the  names  of  heroes." 


Presidents. 

Mes.  B.  F.  Hall  .  . 
Mrs.  Jackson  Johnson 
Mrs.  A.  J.  Howell  . 
Mrs.  J.  A.  Brown  . 
Mrs.  H.  M.  Baker  . 
Miss  Jane  Hall    . 


1888  to  1900 
1900  to  1913 

1913  to  1914 

1914  to  1917 
1917  to  1920 
1920  to  1923 


Vice-Presidents. 

Mrs.  T.  B.  Peirce 1901  to  1902 

Misses  Eliza  Murphy  and  J.  D.  Wood  ....  1902  to  1906 
Misses  Eliza  Murphy  and  Margaret  Peirce  .  .  1904  to  1906 
Mrs.  J.  A.  Brown  and  Miss  Margaret  Peirce  .  1906  to  1908 
Mrs.  A.  D.  McCluee  and  Mrs.  Annie  Witherington  1908  to  1910 

In  1910  the  plan  of  a  Vice-President  for  each  county  was  inaugu- 
rated, these  being : 

First  Vice-President,  Mes.  A.  D.  McCluee     .  .  .  1910  to  1913 

Second  Vice-President,  Miss  Blanch  Paesley  .  .  1910  to  1911 

Second  Vice-President,  Mes.  A.  0.  Osborne    .  .  .  1910  to  1911 

Second  Vice-President,  Miss  R.  E.  L.  Brown  .  .  1912  to  1913 

County  Vice-Presidents — 1910  to  1913. 


Columbus  County     . 
Bladen  County     . 
Brunswick  County 
Onslow  County  . 
Sampson  County  . 

Mrs.  J.  A.  Brown     . 
Mrs.  James  Thomas  . 
Mrs.  A.  W.  Southerland 
Mrs.  A.  H.  Witherington 


.     Mrs.  J.  A.  Brown 

Mrs.  Gr.  L.  Clark 

Miss  Lena  Heminway 

Mrs.  Edward  Ward 

Miss  Mary  Sloan 

.  .  .  1913  to  1914 
1914  to  1917 
1917  to  1922 
1922  to  1923 


[81] 


82  The   Wilmington    Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

Recording  Secretary  and  Treasurer 

Miss  Mary  Anderson 1881  to  1891 

Mrs.  W.  J.  Smith,  Mrs.  H.  A.  Grady  1891  to  1894 

Office  vacant  from 1894  to  1898 

Mrs.  E.  J.  Fennell        1898  to  1900 

Miss  Katherine  Cromartie     .     .     .  1900  to  1904 

Miss  Mary  Devane 1904  to  1906 

Miss  Miriam  McFadyen     ....  1906  to  1911 

Miss  Mary  Sloan 1911  to  1913 

Mrs.  L.  D.  Latta 1913  to  1918 

Mrs.  J.  O.  Carr 1918  to  1921 

Mrs.  W.  M.  Boice 1921  to  1922 

Recording  Secretary. 
Mrs.  A.  J.  Howell    .    1922  to  date 

Treasurer. 
Mrs.  J.  R.  Maxwell  .   1922  to  date 

Secretary  of  Young  People's  Work. 
Mrs.  J.  C.  Stewart  .     .     .      1902  to  1913 


Mrs.  E.  W.  Taylor  . 
Miss  Mary  Sloan  . 
Miss  J.  C.  Stewart  . 
Miss  Alice  Behrends 
Mrs.  J.  M.  Harvey    . 


1913  to  1916 

1916  to  1917 

1917  to  1919 
1919  to  1921 
1921  to  date 


Secretary  Foreign  Missions. 

Miss  Eliza  Murphy  .     .     .  1904  to  1913 

Mrs.  W.  P.  M.  Currie    .     .  1913  to  1918 

Mrs.  J.  R.  Phipps     .     .     .  1918  to  1921 

Mrs.  J.  O.  Carr    ....  1921  to  date 

Secretary  of  Assembly's  Home  Missions. 

Miss  Mary  Sloan     .     .  .  1913  to  1916 

Mr's.  J.  R.  Bannerman  .  .  1916  to  1919 

Mrs.  W.  O.  Singletary  .  .  1919  to  1922 

Mrs.  George  Oldham     .  .  1922  to  date 


Growth  and  Expansion  83 

Secretary  Synodical,  Presbyterial  and  Congregational  Home 

Missions. 

Mrs.  E.  E.  L.  Brown  .  1913  to  1914 
Mrs.  D.  B.  Herring  .  1914  to  1920 
Mrs.  H.  A.  Grady    .     .     1920  to  date 

District  Chairmen — 1919  to  1922. 

Mrs.  L.  D.  Latta  Mrs.  R.  C.  Carson 

Mrs.  O.  L.   Clark  Mrs.    Eugene   Philyaw 

Mrs.  H.  A.  Creagh  Mrs.  J.  N.  Sotjtherland 

Mrs.  A.   H.  Witherington  Mrs.  J.  W.  Stark 

Corresponding  Secretary. 

Miss  Pearl  Murphy 1901  to  1902 

Miss  Annie   Paddison 1902  to  1903 

Miss  Mary  Henry 1903  to  1904 

Miss  Annie  Moore 1904  to  1908 

Mrs.  W.  T.  Bannerman 1908  to  1916 

Office  merged  with  that  of  Recording  Secretary  1916  to  1922 
From  1922  to  date,  office  of  Vice-President  and  Corresponding 

Secretary  combined,   and  Mrs.  A.   H.  Witherington  elected  to  fill 

same. 

Secretary  Christian  Education  and  Ministerial  Relief. 

Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall  ....  1904  to  1908 

Miss  Maria  Loftin  .     .     .  1908  to  1909 

Miss  Mary  Colvin  .     .     .  1909  to  1912 

Miss  Katherine  Newton  .  1912  to  1913 

Miss  Margaret  Peirce  .     .  1913  to  1917 

Mrs.  Robert  King     .     .     .  1917  to  1918 

Mrs.  A.  O.  Trust      .     .     .  1918  to  1921 

Miss  Sallie  Hill  ....  1921  to  date 

Secretary  of  Literature. 

Mrs.  R.  H.  Bradford     .  .  1914  to  1916 

Mrs.   J.   W.  Purcell     .  .  1916  to  1917 

Mrs.  G.  A.  P.  Bowman  .  .  1917  to  1919 

Mrs.  D.  T.  Caldwell     .  .  1919  to  1920 


84  The   Wilmington   Presbyterial   Auxiliary 

Secretary  James  Sprunt  Institute  (Now  Grove  Institute) 

Miss  Marietta  Behrends  .  1915  to  1917 
Mrs.  M.  S.  Willard  .  .  1917  to  1920 
Miss  Winifred  Faison  .     .     1920  to  date 

Secretary  of  Orphanage  Work. 

Mrs.  J.  T.  French  .  .  .  1916  to  1920 

Mrs.  E.   C.   Carson  .  .  .  1920  to  1922 

Mrs.  J.  T.  French  .  .  .  1921  to  1922 

Mrs.  E.  C.  Carson  .  .  .  1922  to  date 


Historian. 

Mrs.  B.  F.  Hall     .     . 

1912  to  1914 

Mrs.  J.  A.  Brown  . 

1918  to  date 

Date  Due 

#R  1  5  35 

Demco  38-297 

